© Copyright, Lerong Ajang, 2008. All rights reserved.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These are pictures of the warrior and plate dances of the Kayan people. These dances are often modernized for tourists and public performances, but the traditional style of these dances require a great deal of stamina, flexibility, and balance, which has impressed many outside observers.

Many of these pictures feature my father, Avalon Ajang Ledong, and various Kayan and Malay dancers in performance. There are even a few photos of a young Lerong learning the plate dance.

When I was in elementary school, I performed the plate dance in front of an audience of teachers and peers. In the small-town community of Ohio where we lived, there seemed to be very little interest or respect for these performances, but, none the less, we were there to show them who we were.