Tribute to Cambodian classical dancer

Prumsodun Ok, 22, top, demonstrates dance techniques during Cambodian classical dance rehearsal at the Khmer Arts Academy Studio in Long Beach, on Feb. 14. (Carlos Delgado / For the Press-Telegram)

02/19/2009
By Greg Mellen, Staff Writer
Long Beach Press Telegram (California, USA)

As a Cambodian classical dancer, Chea Samy bridged generations.

She was schooled and trained in the Royal Cambodian Court as a child protege and later was the pre-eminent dancer of her generation.

After the Khmer Rouge genocide, Chea was one of the few surviving artists and students of the form. Her teachings, choreography and interpretations served to inform the practitioners of today.

On Saturday, the art and choreography of Chea will be performed by students of the Khmer Arts Academy. The dance and lecture are part of an ongoing "Salon Series" of Southern and Southeast Asian arts being presented by the academy and organized by local artist Prumsodun Ok.

Ok describes Chea as a woman who was integral in the pre- and post-revolution art worlds of Cambodia. That she survived the genocide was miraculous. And the oral, musical and gestural knowledge she carried with her out of the carnage were invaluable.

Chea's story is one of incredible contrasts.

"For me the important thing about (Chea) is she is an example of two worlds. As the rumored consort of the king (Monivong) and the sister-in-law of Pol Pot, she straddled two worlds," Ok says.

The cultural purge that marked the regime of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia from 1975 to 1979 nearly wiped out the classical arts that dated back to the ancient Angkor dynasty and beyond.

Artists were among those targeted and killed by the regime. It is estimated up to 90 percent of Cambodia's artists died in the genocide that left upward of 2 million dead from execution, starvation, disease and deprivation.

Despite being the sister-in-law of Pol Pot, Chea received no special treatment. To survive, she hid her identity and occupation from the Khmer Rouge and posed as a simple market vendor.

In fact, Chea claimed it wasn't until three years into the Khmer Rouge regime, when a poster of Pol Pot was erected in her commune, that she learned he was the notorious Brother Number One.

When the Vietnamese invaded Cambodia in 1979 and drove the Khmer Rouge to the hinterlands near the border of Thailand, it became the job of the few surviving classically trained artists to revive the feeble flicker of the ancient arts that had been passed down orally through the ages.

One of those who played a pivotal role was Chea.

Trained in the royal Cambodian court since early childhood, Chea had been the leading performer of female roles of her generation. Chea entered the royal court in 1925 at age 6 and by her teens was a leading performer.

After the downfall of the Khmer Rouge, Chea, at age 57, made her way back to Phnom Penh and was asked by the new government to revive classical dance. With the help of surviving musicians, Chea gradually rebuilt the ballet. She continued teaching until her death in 1994.

Ok says Chea molded and trained the next generation of dancers, setting upon them the traditional repertoire, as well as new choreographic works that faithfully employed the ancient gestural language of Cambodian classical dance.

Among Chea's students was Sophiline Cheam Shapiro, who founded the Khmer Arts Academy and oversees and trains a Cambodian dance troupe that tours internationally.

On Saturday, students from Khmer Arts Academy will present two dances. In one, "Robam Monosanchetouna," two lovers cross paths in a blissful garden. In the other, "Robam Neary Chea Chuor," young ladies in line celebrate the beauty of their art.

The performance will be followed by a discussion focusing on the narrative elements of this highly stylized dance choreographed by Chea.

The "Salon Series" will continue on the third Saturday of every month. Future performances will feature Balinese shadow puppetry, Indian classical music and other Asian performance arts.
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SALON SERIES AT KHMER ARTS ACADEMY

When: 7 p.m. Saturday.
Where: 1364 Obispo Ave., Long Beach.
Admission: Free.
Information: (562) 472-0090, www.khmerartsacademy.com.

Greg Mellen (562) 499-1291 greg.mellen@presstelegram.com