Traditional dance is still incredibly popular in Cambodia, and I love how we got this class going.
It was partly a compromise to get a breakdancing class that attracts the 'rougher' kids, to have this as well. Then the teacher and musicians, from a private local business, when they learnt about our project, offered a lower rate. The girls in the class include Vietnamese girls born and raised in Cambodia. One of our boys ended up learning how to play the traditional drums after hanging out around the musicians and has - for a super shy kid - more confidence now. The dresses they're wearing were sewn by our older Get Ready graduates who run a small business on our site. The class is funded by a grant from ArtAction who really get what these extras can mean to our kids.
Dance isn't the same as food or medicine. But when you're working with traumatized children, when trafficking=poverty+despair, dance and art are powerful weapons.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Traditional dance class
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2 comments:
wHAt are the pants call that they are wearing? and how can i make them for myself?
Hi Nancy, they are a form of sampot, the Cambodian traditional costume. You can read more about Khmer dance costumes here: http://www.angelfire.com/art/apsarakhmer/dance_costumes_and_dance_characters.htm and about Sampots here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sampot
They are traditionally just a long piece of cloth folded cleverly to become pants/breeches, but for our girls, and for dance students more often, they are simple pants with extra cloth to look like the traditional form, but a lot easier and faster to wear! I don't know if there is a paper pattern - the Bright Girls sewing co-op at Riverkids made them based on a costume they had.
If you know someone Khmer, they can probably show you how to wrap it - it's a bit like a sari, after a while you get the knack for it.
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