Khmeropédies III: Source / Primate at Esplanade theatre studio

Phnom Penh-based Amrita Performing Arts and French-Cambodian choreographer Emmanuèle Phuon present Khmeropédies III: Source / Primate, a work that offers a rare view of the creativity brewing in the heart of a changing Cambodia.

Khmeropédies III: Source / Primate takes its source in the study of monkeys, as did the old masters in the tradition of the monkey role in Cambodian classical dance. The work follows the same path, but also uses modern resources such as scientific studies of primates in its research.
Here, seven young dancers are free from the structure of Cambodian classical dance drama and instead, inhabit a space completely their own. In each scene, they express a beautiful meeting between two vastly different worlds: their training in the traditional arts of Lakhaon Kaol (Cambodian male masked dance), and the encounter with the modern world of contemporary dance.

Accompanied by music as diverse as Steve Reich and ethnic minority vocals, Khmeropédies III: Source / Primate will captivate you with its virtuosity and response to the balance between tradition and the drive for creative evolution.