Ronggeng bind together the various elements of dance events by performing femininity in several sensory modes. Visually, ronggeng accentuate their feminine attributes through extraordinary dress and grooming. Aurally, ronggeng voices incite desire through melody and poetry. Tactilely, ronggeng interact with men on a one-to-one basis, dancing in close proximity to – even touching – their partners. As objects of desire in multiple dimensions, ronggeng force the male participants to make a choice: either to indulge their desires or to transcend them. (Spiller 2007:41–2) Although most sources on the Malay ronggeng stipulate that touching was prohibited, ronggeng dancers were generally considered having low moral standards and easily offering sexual favours to their male clients. R.J. Wilkinson, the unchallenged authority on Malay language and culture, considered Malay ronggeng a debased form of a Javanese original in which respectable Malay girls would not partake (Wilkinson 1910).2