Khmer Dance Project

Royal Khmer Dance

robam preah reachea trop

Past and Present

In 1906, two years after succeeding his half-brother Norodom, King Sisowath of Cambodia, accompanied by the Royal Ballet, embarked on a long trip to Marseilles for the French Colonial Exposition. France responded warmly to the charming dancers and the king’s entourage. The famous sculptor Rodin was
so enchanted by the dancers that he traveled with them and drew evocative sketches of their fluid, graceful movements. Lamenting their inevitable departure, Rodin, profoundly moved, confessed: “What emptiness they left me with. I thought they had taken away the beauty of the world. I followed them to Marseilles; I would have followed them as far as Cairo.”Continue Reading>>

Source: Dancing Across Borders & Courtesy of Alex Khun for the contribution of this article.