Dancing Elephant Festival

Dancing Elephant Festival is also another famous festival in Myanmar. It is held in Kyaukse surrounded by paddy fields and 0 miles (50 km) to the south of Mandalay. In this festival, huge elephant figures are made of bamboo, cloth, paper and marvelous decoration with two men inside one figure to perform.

However, not only participants with the best elephant’s costume but also participants with the best dance performance will receive a prize from the local committee of the festival.

The musical instrument for the performance is Dobat and Drums. Because rhythm of this instrument is very quick and people inside the figure hardly see anything outside, it is quite difficult for dancers to perform well. They are more likely to use feeling and instinct while moving rather than sighting. A good balance and physical endurance are needed in order to keep the dummy stands sturdily. This elephant’s dance performance in Kyaukse is quite similar with the Lion Dance from Chinese, the difference lies on the figure utilized in both festivals. While the Chinese Lion Dance wears Lion costume, the Kyaukse Elephant’s Dance use the elephant’s dummy as a costume for the dance.

After a whole day of dancing, the announcement of the Elephant’s Dance Competition winner will be held at night. The indulgence and passion of the festival makes most people both inside and outside Myanmar attracted to attend it.