High on a sea cliff, the sun melts into the horizon as hundreds of bare-chested chanters form a circle around the stage.
The Kecak rhythm begins waves of “cak, cak, cak” sometimes called the “monkey chant”, a hypnotic human orchestra where voices replace instruments. Over roughly an hour, they build a wall of rhythm and sound as dancers in rich costumes retell scenes from the Ramayana, Rama, Sita, Hanuman and the battle against the demon king Ravana, ending with a fire walking sequence with ocean and sky as the backdrop.