LANGUAGE, MOVEMENT, AND CULTURAL IDENTITY IN DOLANAN PERFORMANCES: TRACING NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN BALINESE TRADITIONS AT THE BALI ARTS FESTIVAL

Warananingtyas Palupi, Prof. Dr. Agus Cahyono, M. Hum, Prof. Dr. Wayan Adnyanya, S. Sn., M. Sn., and Prof. Dr. Hartono, M. Pd.

Abstract


Abstract: Children's performances at the Utsawa Gong Kebyar Children during the 2025 Bali Arts Festival are more than just playful spectacles, but they pulse with language, movement, and cultural memory. This study explores how children from Northern and Southern Bali express their regional identities through dialects, gestures, and choreographed dolanan performances. Rather than positioning children as passive entertainers, this research considers them as active cultural agents who carry, reshape, and negotiate meaning through embodied traditions. Drawing on ethnolinguistic identity theory and a performative analysis framework, the study is grounded in field observations and comparative interpretation of linguistic and movement-based expressions. Findings suggest that regional identity is not only spoken or danced, but deeply rooted in shared values and communal memory, embodied through children's performances. The Utsawa Gong Kebyar Anak thus becomes a living space where local language is preserved, cultural roles are rehearsed, and identity is playfully reimagined. This paper contributes to wider discussions on arts-based education, child-centered cultural policy, and the performative dimensions of cultural sustainability.

Keywords:
play performances, ethnolinguistic identity, Northern and Southern Bali cultural transmission, children's embodiment,

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References


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