Apsara Dance |
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Apsara Dance, or Robam Tep Apsara is a famous Khmer Classical Dance, which forms an integral part of the culture of Cambodia, as well as neighboring countries such as Thailand and Laos. In its modern form, the dance is heavily influenced by the depiction of dancing apsaras at the Angkor Wat temple complex.
The performance was first introduced to foreign countries during the 1960s, when it became known in the English language as the Khmer Royal Ballet, or alternatively the Cambodian Royal Ballet. The first royal ballerina ever was Norodom Bopha Devi, a daughter of Norodom Sihanouk.
Origin A bas relief at the 12th century temple of Angkor Wat in Cambodia.Apsara Dance is one of two major forms of Khmer dance and incorporates parts of the other, much older, traditional or popular dance, which has its roots in animism and primitive magic, with Hindu forms introduced during the time of Indian influence beginning in the 1st century; the dance in turn drew its inspiration from the mythological court of the gods and from its celestial dancers, the Apsaras. The dance took on its own unique form adding movements and meaning, during the reigns of Jayavarman II and Jayavarman VII as well as in the Angkor era. By the 13th century, the dance received a Khmer identity rather than Indian, unlike any other dance form in the world. It melded soft movement with loud, traditional Khmer music during its performance. In that era, Apsara dance was performed solely for the benefit of the upper class, and particularly for the king.
Estimates suggest that there were 3,000 apsara dancers in the 12th Century court of King Jayavarman VII. Between the 12th and the 15th centuries, Apsara dance flourished, until the Thais sacked Angkor in the 15th century; the invaders, not immune to the allure of the dance tradition, are reputed to have taken a troupe of aspara dancers back home with them. While this moment was a setback to the tradition of Khmer Classical Dance, the aspara dance tradition was nonetheless set in stone, as represented in the bas-reliefs of the Angkorian temples in Cambodia.
For centuries the dance was seemingly never performed again in public, yet it seems to have been maintained as an unbroken tradition in the courts of the Angkorian monarchs. Dance nonetheless remained culturally important in the Angkor era such as Siem Reap, Surin Province (now in Thailand) but with different styles due to uncertain knowledge for the original dance which Surin people performs apsara dance in a little fast movement and sustain with Thai-Laos musical.
The New Wave Artists in Khmer Classical Dance perform in January 2007 in Siem Reap.In 1940s, Queen Sisowath Kosamak Naryrath, the wife of King Norodom Suramarit, was sent an invitation to Sothearath primary school, seeing the school mistress prepared an inspirational angkor apsara dance which is performed by young school in the paper apsara costume includes Crown, Sampot and Flower, all referencing Apsara represented at Angkor Wat. The Queen got the idea to re-create the dance and led her first granddaughter, Princess Norodom Bopha Devi, a daughter of Norodom Sihanouk, to become the first professional apsara dancer of the modern era. The Princess started practicing the dance since she was 5 years old and danced apsara for first time during King Norodom Sihanouk's tenure.
In 1967, the fine–boned young princess, clad in silk and glittering jewels, performed beneath the stars on the open pavilion within the palace walls, accompanied by the Royal dance troupe and the "pinpeat" orchestra: Gongs, drums, xylophones, horns and stringed instruments. Selected by her grandmother, Queen Sisowath Monivong Kossomak Neary Rath Vattana, to become a dancer when she was only a baby. She toured the world as the "white Apsara" or principal dancer of the classical Cambodian ballet – a stunningly graceful, 2000-year-old blend of sinuous hand gestures and sinuous body movements, all deep with meaning. Responsible for its rebirth, she became the symbol of classical Khmer dancing, dormant since the 15th century, when the glory of Angkor faded and with it the Khmer cultural dominance of Southeast Asia. In reviving the classical dance, Queen Kossomak and Princess Buppha Devi brought the dance not only to the world but also–for the first time-to the Cambodian people. In the past, the classical dance was the Royal dance, performed only before Royalty to commemorate their dynastic ancestors and to honor the gods. This is the new wave for Apsara dance but the new traditional dance took a quiet different style from Apsara of Angkor Wat included Clothes, Crown, style etc and developed a new style again and again until now. Especially, the new Apsara Dance is exactly performed all in public and everywhere not only for king like before.
Only in 1995, 16 years after the fall of the Khmer Rouge, did Cambodia have another public exposition of the Apsara Dance.[3] Cambodia revived its Ramayana tradition after 25 years with a performance of the epic at Angkor Wat. Dancers came from six countries as part of a Southeast Asia cultural exchange. The dances are full of meaning, with each gesture symbolizing something, from great concepts such as love and peace to small. A finger to the sky means "today" arms crossed over the chest "very happy," and the left arm stretched out behind the dancer’s right hand held up before the chest with three fingers up and index finger touching the thumb depict the Naga, the great many-headed snake that symbolizes the spirit of the Cambodian people. It was not until 1995, a full sixteen years after the fall of the Khmer Rouge, that Cambodians once again witnessed a public performance of apsara dance, at Angkor Wat. During the mid-20th century, it was introduce to the public where it now remains an celebrated icon of Khmer culture often being performed during public events, holidays and for tourists in Cambodia.
A number of specialized schools continue to teach the dance to young people, in order to maintain the storied cultural heritage.
Movements and gesture: Kbach Khmer classical dancers use stylized movements and gestures to tell a story much like a mime, but in a more vague way as most audiences will probably never understand more than a couple of gestures. Dancers do not speak or sing; they dance with a slight smile and are never supposed to open their mouths. Khmer classical dance can be compared to French ballet as it requires years of practice and stretching at a young age so the limbs become very flexible. Dancers flex their fingers backwards, as well as toes when dancing.
Gestures in Khmer classical dance are called kbach (style). These kbach are broken down into several categories depending on which body parts are involved. Hand gestures that involve fingers are called cheep which means to pinch. These hand gestures can represent various things from nature such as fruit, flowers, and leaves. When put together in combination they can have different meanings.
Costume Crown (Mekot) The Cambodian Apsara crown is more sophisticated than that of many other dances, designed to simulate ancient bas-relief depictions of Angkor Wat and other Khmer temples. The leading Apsara crown commonly has five points or tips, with two rows of spherical decorations like the apsara pictured at Angkor Wat. Crowns worn by the subordinate dancers commonly have three points and only one row of sphere decoration. These crowns often include garlands of artificial hair with ornate adornments. The five-points crowns are frequently absent in modern dance routines.
Over time, the lengthy, beautiful hair of the apsara dancer came customarily to be replaced by artificial hair, in order for it to be very long and beautiful. The first crown featuring artificial hair was worn by Norodom Bopha Devi.
The Apsara tradition in Surin province, Thailand, features crowns of three golden garlands of artificial hair with ornate adornments.
Blouse, skirt, belt
The exquisite silk skirt worn by the performing Apsara dancers is called a 'charabob', traditionally, white is reserved for the leading dancer, while the remaining subordinate dancers conventionally wear red, light green and blue skirts. Charabob's are an exquisite silk and/or cotton blended material, which display elaborate geometric patterns and designs. Often, these skirts are worn in a front pleated fashion, a pleated fringe in the front and occasionally the left of the skirt is also pleated.
The Charabob emulates glistening gold with refined diamond-like patterns that compliment a skillfully woven backdrop. Used traditionally as a skirt-like garment worn around the waist and fastened behind, this material is also commonly tailored for other customary occasions.
In Northeast Thailand, the apsara all wear dress with different kind of colour. The apsara mostly wears the only piece of skill covers their chest and show up their stomach.
The striking red-cloth belt is comparable to the collar (Sarong Kor). While similarly decorated with warped spear-like tips draped on a red cloth, the straight cloth differs as it is a flat red cloth while contrarily the Sarong Kor (collar) is patched on a round cloth. The arm pads are gold flat jeweled ornaments. The central part is thicker than the edges which are worn on both forearms.
Decorative flowers Located on the right of the crown is a beautiful white flower with an inclined stem and a cluster of petals located at the its end. These decorative papaya flowers (Lbak Pka Somyong) have ten centimeters of cotton thread sewn into them to create the effect of a falling stem. These flowers are male papaya flowers, which should have buds. If the male papaya flower is not available, the 'reak' flower can be substituted.
Frangipani flowers that are already open are worn on the dancer's ear, to complement and enhance the beauty of each dancer's face.
Collar (Sarong Kor) This gorgeous round decorative collar (red colored) is highly visible, found just below the neck the collar is embellished with detailed gold colored copper ornaments and beaded designs. The elaborate decorations is usually found gracefully decorated on two separate rows. Additional copper ornaments are found hanging below these rows, in the shape of difficult-to-describe warped spear tips. The largest of which is centralized.
Jewelry Dangling earrings, which are bound in bunches, traditionally stretch almost to the shoulder. These dangling earrings are mainly duplicated from the design of the 'krorsang' flower (a large spiny tree with sour fruit) and are preferred to the 'mete' (chili) flowers, which are held to be less beautiful.
There are a total of four types of wrist jewelry. 1)Korng Rak 2 & 3) Kantrom 4)Korng Gnor 5)Sanlek. The first is a truly beautiful diamond-like studded bracelet a fine and elegantly wrist jewel decorated in a tree branch-like fashion, the second is more of a spring-like coiled gold colored thick copper while the third type of bracelet (two sets are worn) are small round beaded orb/sphere bunches delicately connected to one another, the last bracelet is a intricate and well decorated thickly rounded jewel. Additionally an Apsara dancer may be found wearing a garland of jasmine.
Two types of gold ankle jewelry are usually worn by the Apsara dancer, the first being KORNG TORNG CHHUK the second KORNG GNOR/KRAVEL. Notice KORNG GNOR is also one of the mentioned Wrist Jewels.
Sangva is a loosely decorated band of beads worn crosswise. The golden flower is considered a body-decorating element, either worn on the waist or carried during the performance. It too is gold in color, and made of thin flexible copper.
Apsara training Traditional dancing never died out in Cambodia, unlike classical dance, which since the decline of Angkor was revived within the past century by Queen Kossomak and Princess Buppha Devi, who became one of many teachers of Apsara dance. Both forms thrive now. Queen Kossomak modernized many traditions, and she herself went to the primary schools to seek out girls with the fine bones and graceful limbs who would make good dancers. These young girds were trained initially at school outside the palace, and eventually trained inside the palace, a system that remains in place today.
Today children selected for dance training are taught to do hand exercise at an early age to loosen their joints. Dancers must be trained while the bones are still supple.
Apsara dancers’ fingers are extraordinarily elastic, they can bend their fingers backwards almost to the wrist. One of the most prominent choreographers on Cambodia today is Proeung Chhiebg, 47, a former member of the Royal dance
Apsara Dancing Training at University of Fine Arts troupe who used to perform with Princess Norodom Buppha Devi. His grandmother was a member of the Royal dance troupe and he and his sister, also a Royal dancer, used to follow her around the palace grounds while she trained. At age 8 he went into formal training under his grandmother. "I always played the monkey role because of its acrobatics," he said. The Royal dancers weren’t paid particularly well. He said his first salary was 25 riel or about 1 cent. At 17 he became a dance teacher. He is one of only a handful of dance teachers to have survived the Khmer Rouge era, a regime that resulted in the deaths of most of the intellectuals and artists. Today he is the Dean of the Choreographic Arts Faculty at the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh. In addition to classical, traditional dancing is also taught at the Royal University of Fine Arts, along with masked drama, shadow puppets classical Cambodian music and circus arts.
Apsara training at Royal University of Fine Arts As in the old days, technical training is given in the morning and regular schooling takes place in the afternoon. Although now retired from professional dancing, today at age 53 Princess Buppha Devi continues to dazzle audiences through her work as director of the 300 dancers who belong to the modern Royal ballet. Today, Apsara-dancing performances are no longer relegated to the gods and kings. Performances can been seen at the major hotels, and at Chatomuk Theater near the Royal Palace. With the tinkling of xylophones and a euphony of gongs and drums, the Apsara dancers, dressed in their tightly fitted silk tunics embroidered in gold and silver, barefoot but with elaborate headdresses, and outstretched arms symbolizing the naga and glistening with jewelry, enter the stage to perform with incredible grace. Dancing holds great significance for the Khmer people and the government considers the Royal ballet in particular to be a national treasure. Princess Buppha Devi, along with the Ministry of Culture, helping to ensure that its traditions will flourish in the next century. As Proeung Chhieng firmly believes, "Dance is our national soul".
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The apsara, a woodland spirit, is played by a woman, sewn into tight-fitting traditional dress whose graceful, sinuous gestures are codified to narrate classical myths or religious stories. The tradition of dance, honed for over a millennium, was almost lost in the Cambodian genocide, when the Khmer Rouge targeted those involved in the dance and "imposed a massive cultural forgetting". In 2003, UNESCO declared the dance a "Masterpiece of Oral and Intangible Culture", and laid plans for a regeneration of the art form.
The Apsara costume maintains the influence of the traditional garment, although, like the crown, some dress is also different. The shirt adorn in the Apsara dance differs from that of other dances, being form-fitting, the cloth is usually a white or skin colored without any beads, jewelry or distracting features. This shirt is worn by each type of Apsara dancer (Two types of dancers Leading and Subordinate). The white shirt suggests nakedness, as would be the case with an actual woodland spirit.