Shahrul Idzman, or Lolong as he's affectionately known, goes through his moves with a confidence and conviction that belie his age. At eight, he's the youngest dancer in a troupe from Semporna, a small coastal town in Malaysia's eastern Sabah state.
Lolong's talent is probably inherited. His grandaunt, Intan Sulga, is head of the dance troupe. All are members of the Bajau Laut, one of Sabah's many ethnic groups.
They're performing for a group of 80 schoolchildren under a Bajau cultural revival project sponsored by Malaysian telecoms company DiGi. For the next three months, the students, aged between 11 and 16 will learn ethnic dance from Sulga and her troupe, as well as Bajau music and handicrafts such as pottery and weaving.
'There's such a rich tradition of dance, music and craft among the different ethnic communities of Sabah. But unless they're helped to preserve their heritage, they won't last long,' says Judeth Baptist, an assistant curator at the Sabah Museum who is heading the project.
Sabah is home to about 24 indigenous groups that make up about half the population. Each has its own distinct culture. But tribal lifestyles are giving way to relentless development. As resettlement schemes shifted indigenous groups from their customary long-houses, a number of rituals and dance were lost. Yet others were abandoned as organised religions made inroads in the formerly animist communities, says 45-year-old Baptist, who has regularly ventured into the thickly forested interior to document rituals and traditional celebrations.
She hopes that, by working with the children in Semporna, there's a chance the Bajau culture won't be completely swallowed by progress.