Those familiar with Javanese dance will be sorry to learn that the disastrous earthquake in May destroyed two court dance schools on the island. But since then, the desire to rebuild the legendary schools has spread among traditional dance lovers, even in Thailand, where a charity event is scheduled to raise funds for the project.

Led by the James HW Thompson Foundation, the event comprises a series of Yogyakarta court dance performances entitled "Raising the Roof", to be held at the Siam Society tomorrow, and workshops on Javanese traditional dance on September 21.

Garrett Kam, a Hawaiian dancer who initiated the project with the Thompson Foundation, says he went to Yogyakarta in late July, two months after the quake. At the time, he says, both the Mardawa Budaya and Pamulangan Beksa Ngayogyakarta schools of court dance were still in ruins.

"Photos and television coverage couldn't have prepared me enough to witness this firsthand. Whole villages had gone, buildings were leaning over at gravity-defying angles. The dance schools have sections that are just piles of bricks and beams; in other places the pillars are tilted at 70-degree angles and barely resting on their bases."

Kam strolled around the site and saw the teachers' living quarters still uninhabitable. They were living in tents or under makeshift tarpaulin covers.

At this time of year it is still dry, but things will get worse when the rainy season starts in December. Kam says it is essential the teachers get into decent shelters before then.

The first fund-raising event took place in Ubud, Bali on July 14 and featured solo Javanese performances alternating with Balinese music and dance pieces. More than US$800 (Bt30,000 ) was raised, all of which went to the schools' foundation in Yogyakarta.

A series of performances and workshops also took place in Singapore from September 3 to 13, where about $3,000 was raised.

"Rebuilding will take several years, as it is a heritage site. So every reusable piece from the original building must be incorporated back into the reconstruction. Meanwhile, teachers are trying to conduct classes on the verandah of a government building that was only slightly damaged by the quake," says Kam.

Tomorrow night's "Raising the Roof" performances at the Siam Society include Yogyakarta court dances, as well as masked and rod-puppet shows.

Kam will lead the show with Japanese artist Neomi Ogo. They both graduated from the disaster-hit schools and have performed in several countries.

The event will also include three performances that combine Thai and Javanese dancing styles by prominent Thai dancers Pichet Klunchun, Chantana Iamsakul and the Tracks ensemble.

Javanese and Thai traditional dance have a lot of things in common. Kam says the body and limbs in both styles are used in a very similar way, with the knees bent and kept to the sides, toes raised, torso upright, arms to the sides with lots of use of the wrists.

Javanese dance in the Yogyakarta style has more pauses than Thai dance, but the face doesn't show much emotion and there's no smiling. Thai dance uses more gestures and accents than the Yogyakarta style. Both repertoires are influenced by the dance-dramas based on the Ramayana/Ramakien epic and the Panji/Inao romances.

Kam will also give a talk introducing Javanese court dance and explaining its similarities and differences to Thai court dance.

Two workshops on Javanese dance will be organised in which Kam and Neomi Ogo will provide training on the basic elements of Yogyakarta dance such as body postures, hand gestures and head, arm and leg coordination. The first workshop is scheduled to take place on September 21.

Eric Booth, a board member at the James H W Thompson Foundation, says all proceeds from the events will go toward the restoration of the Mardawa Budaya and Pamulangan Beksa Ngayogyakarta schools through the Sasmintadipura Dance Education Foundation that manages them.

Philip Cornwel-Smith, a Bangkok-based writer and coordinator of the event, says the disaster hadn't been fully explained in Thailand. "I think when people learn about it they will be shocked at the extent [of the damage], and they'll want a chance to help tham boon [make merit]," he says.

"Raising the Roof" will be performed tomorrow, from 6.30 to 8.30pm, at the Siam Society, Soi Asoke (Sukhumvit 21), Bangkok.

Tickets cost Bt500 (minimum suggested donation) and are available at the Siam Society and the Jim Thompson House.

Javanese dance workshops on September 21 from 1 to 4pm will be held at the Jim Thompson House's Ayara Room. The date for a second workshop is yet to be confirmed. Registration is open at the Jim Thompson House. Admission is free for students, but the general public pay Bt200. Call (02) 762 2563-4.