There isn't much you have to know to appreciate the Barong and Kris Dance, performed daily in Batubulan Village in Bali. Like just about everything in Bali, the Barong and Kris Dance tells the story of a struggle between Good and Evil, based on the Ramayana.

Then there are a Prince, who gets captured; Hanuman, the monkey god; Garuda, a legendary bird (and a less than legendary airline); and assorted henchpeople, dancing girls, and Balinese equivalents of Stooges and Marx Brothers. I've seen the Barong and Kris Dance three times, and I still can't figure out who everybody is.

All to the accompaniment of a gamelan orchestra, of course. Here's the drummer—