The mention of dance and Indonesia in the same sentence would for 99 percent of people evoke images of the legong or similar traditional artistic creative and ritual expressions.

Such is the power of this iconic image that it was quite astonishing to discover the 2013 Lombok International Dance Festival, held last weekend at the Bima Ballroom in the Santosa Villas and Resort in Senggigi, is an internationally acclaimed World Dance Organization (WDO) and International Dance Asia (IDA) event featuring competition in ballroom and Latin dancing, as well as hip-hop and electric boogie.

The event also included a gala performance featuring world professional champions Natalia Smirnova and Ivan Kyrlov, plus a large traditional dance category.  

The competition, held over two days, was split into four sessions closing with the Sunday night gala that included the final of the Pro and Pro-Am classes, plus honor dances from the earlier category winners.

Saturday morning and early afternoon saw the traditional dance competition, with the evening turned over to the local hip-hop and break dance crews. Sunday morning saw ballroom and Latin heats, featuring a mix of tremendous local and international talent, as well as huge beginner groups dancing the rumba and cha-cha-cha.

With hundreds of competitors, it is impossible to convey the scale, the exultation, the tears and whoops of happiness or the sullen grimaces of disappointment that the competition served up. But there were some fabulous highlights, where for a brief moment a remarkable connection existed between the dancer and the audience, and some of those, at least can be shared.

The traditional section was, as anticipated, a fierce contest with representatives from all around the archipelago demonstrating why Indonesian dance is so hugely popular with visitors and locals alike.

Can you feel the heat?: The Russian pair of Evgeny Sokhranny and Anastasia Kositsyna perform with real fire and passion in the explosive and super competitive Professional International Open Latin Samba.
Even without any understanding of content or context, the beauty of the dance beat a cerebral path that only the most hardened soul could withstand. For those who love dance, it ignites the imagination as the dancers become immersed, trance-like in their performance.

While all were excellent, two remarkable performances stood out; the group interpretation of Nataraja (Cosmic Dancer) by Ganesha (contestant 19) and a solo creative topeng (mask) dance by Putu Gita Rahayu (contestant 49). Both received rapturous support, justifiably so as they claimed their respective prizes; the first of a hatful for the talented Bintang Gendis, from the Ganesha group, who later claimed Latin and synchronized duo awards.  

The evening freestyle category was a smorgasbord of styles, including a fun-filled can-can, but was dominated by group dance routines performed by The Fresh Girls, Cheez Crew, Swag Army, Big Fame Scandal and Chilli Paradise, to name but a few of the impressive Lombok Massive.

The night'€™s work for the international panel of judges must have been an incredibly difficult affair such was the variety on show; '€œWe judge on performance, how they deliver on the night,'€ said panelist Peter Townsend from Australia.

As superb as some acts were, a delightfully buoyant young girl stole the show with her larger-than-life personality as she bounced from Gangnam Style to Swan Lake and back again via Gangtsa Rap; tremendous entertainment!  

The often frenetic freestyle pace of Saturday night was replaced the following morning by the relative calm of the Senior and Pre-Amateur ballroom and Latin. This illusion of serenity was soon shattered as the WDO competitions got underway and the gulf between classes, in terms of technical ability and sheer speed, was obvious to even the untrained eye.

Nose to nose: Johnston Lim and the beautiful Nicole Tan from Malaysia compete in the International Amateur Latin Paso Doble, a classic performance of true sensuality.
Competitors from as far afield as the UK, Hong Kong, China, Korea, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Myanmar and Malaysia joined with Indonesian dancers to entertain and compete. Is it possible to select a favorite moment from the ballroom and Latin classes? Probably not, such was the standard; it was simply enthralling from beginning to end.

That said, a special mention should made to the inspiring performance in the IDA Under-14 class  by Yogyakarta'€™s Stephanus Renalto Bintang and his beautiful dance partner Vialinda Dewi Fortuna who, dressed in the sequin-rich Indonesian colors of red and white, were captivating.

The weekend had been a fantastic success and a credit to the organization and its members, who, as part of the WDO and IDA, are expanding this delightful experience to islands like Lombok. With the prize-giving frenzy almost complete, perhaps the best was yet to come as the world champions Smirnova and Kyrlov would perform their championship winning show dance as a prelude to the Professional Class competition.

Even as the beautiful young Russian couple warmed up, the atmosphere was changing, tension and anticipation was in the air as future champions'€™ rubbed shoulders with beginners old and young, all eager to see a couple at the very top of their game. As the show began, the audience watched in awe as they wheeled gracefully around the dance floor, pausing only to soak up the adulation that erupted as the music finished.  

The Lombok International Dance Festival is a must for dance lovers and next year it will take yet another step on its evolutionary ladder. Running from June 20, the festival will include the 2014 World Championships and will no doubt attract even more extraordinary performers to delight and inspire the eager '€œLombok Massive'€.  

How cute are we?: Competing in the Traditional Dance Group U13 Category, Team 34 from Lombok presented by Sanggar Anjani examine pictures of their high-speed Bird Dance on a mobile device.
'€” Photos by Chris O'€™Connor.