Drametse Ngacham UNESCO Drum Dance Festival

"The Drametse Ngacham — inscribed on UNESCO's Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage — is a drum dance of wrathful deities originating at Drametse Monastery in Mongar. Performed at the annual Drametse Tshechu, elaborately costumed dancers wear animal-head masks and beat large drums while enacting Guru Drakpo's subjugation of evil spirits in a choreographic cycle transmitted unbroken from master to student since the 16th century. Witnessing it at its home monastery is an irreplaceable cultural event."