Bali is an Indonesian island with a diverse population and a strong focus on performance and its relevance to society and culture. Many of the religious celebrations and rituals contain elements of performance in their worship. Tourists are often amazed at the skill and complete emersion in performance genres they encounter when they visit this beautiful island. The Bali beach resorts provide luxury accommodations and great views. They are extremely conducive to relaxation and peace, which helps prepare eager guests for the next day’s adventure. Depending on the season and time of year they visit this vibrant island, they may even be placed in the middle of festival or other major celebration. Some guests find festivals to be the best time to visit the island.

Some of the celebration-oriented performances are also highly improvisational. Wayang Kulit and topeng are two performance genres that use improvisation to adapt to specific situations and spontaneous ideas and motifs. The Wayang Kulit is a shadow puppet theatre. It takes its name from Wayang, which is commonly used for theatre, though it translates more literally as shadow. It is also associated with spirit. In Bali the Wayang Kulit is generally accompanied by gender wayang.

Topeng is a popular Indonesian style of dance. It is done with a group of dancers and one or more of them will be wearing a mask. The dancers act out various traditional stories that involve mythological heroes or kings. The use of the mask is commonly attributed to the ancient belief that dancers are the interpreters of gods. Some of the standard masks used are the Topeng Manis, who is a dignified hero, the Topeng Kras, who is an authoritarian figure, and the Topeng Tua, who is an old man and primarily there for comic relief. These dances are narrated, so the story can be clearly understood. The narration also contributes to the intensity of the drama and can place specific perspectives on what is being seen.