About this experience
The Traditional Dance Experience from Panadura is a private lesson in Sinhalese dance and drumming, taught in a dance studio near Panadura by an experienced, English-speaking instructor. Over three hours you learn the basic steps of three regional dance styles and a drum rhythm to go with each one, so you come away with a feel for how movement and beat work together.
Sri Lanka's traditional dance falls into regional schools, and the lesson covers three of them. Kandyan dance, known locally as uda rata natum, is the dance of the hill country and the style most often seen in street processions and on stage; its movements are sharp and exacting. The dances of the southern plains, pahatha rata natum, are slower and more exaggerated, while Sabaragamuwa natum is more flexible and active. Along the way your instructor explains some of the traditions and stories behind each style.
Each school has its own drum. Kandyan dancing is accompanied by the geta bera and low-country dancing by the yak bera, both played with the hands, while Sabaragamuwa dancing uses the davula, struck with a stick on one side and a hand on the other. In the lesson you move between dancing and drumming, learning three rhythms in all.
The session is private, open to participants aged five and above, and starts at either 10:00 am or 2:00 pm, chosen when you book. The instructor and all taxes and service charges are included. Hotel pick-up and drop-off are not included, and gratuities and expenses of a personal nature are excluded.
