A Cambodian Dance Speaks of Men - Women Inequalities Affecting People as Polluted Water Does

Cambodian dancer Chumvan Sodhachivy, or Belle, performs in “Black Water,” a contemporary dance she created. Photo: Miguel Lopes Jeronimo

PHNOM PENH — The Cambodian contemporary dance "Black Water" recently presented at the French Institute in Phnom Penh speaks of the inequality between men and women that still remains in the country in spite of progress made and, like polluted water in some canals in the capital, keeps harming people.

Performed by Cambodian contemporary dancers Chumvan Sodhachivy known as Belle and Chhun Baramey, “Black Water” included Portuguese photographer Miguel Lopes Jeronimo whose video images were projected in the course of the dance.

During the performance with staging that involved a water pond, the effects of those inequalities were likened to the canals in Phnom Penh that are filled with polluted water and whose full impact may not be known.

“In our tradition, we compare a woman to a white sheet of paper or white cloth,” said Belle.  “If we have a black point, a black drop on white clothes, everyone will focus on the black point even if it is very small. Then they would say the woman is bad…because of the black point on her, blah, blah…But a man, whatever happens, will wash away the black point and all will be fine.” So, a man can be respected again no matter what he did while a woman will lose her reputation forever, Belle said, due to double standards that remain in society today.  

“A woman does not fully have the right to do what she wishes as a man does,” she said. “A man always has opportunities and can do what he wants.”

  Cambodian dancer Chumvan Sodhachivy, or Belle, is shown in a scene of “Black Water,” a contemporary dance she created. Photo: Miguel Lopes Jeronimo 

One of the country’s foremost contemporary dancers and choreographers, Belle began training in Khmer classical dance as a child—she was 9 years old—according to tradition in the country.

At 16 years old, Belle turned to contemporary dance and, as part of the NGO Amrita Performing Arts dance project, trained in several international programs. She has performed in Africa, Asia, Europe, Oceania and United States. Currently vice dean at the Faculty of Choreography of the Royal University of Fine Arts (RUFA) in Phnom Penh, she is a founder of the SilverBelle Dance Group of Performing Artists.

Chhun Baramey who is performing with her in “Black Water” is a Lakhaon Kaol  (men Khmer masked dance) student at RUFA and a contemporary dance student of Belle.

Jeronimo who collaborated with Belle to create this dance has been based in Phnom Penh for eight years. A writer, artist, photographer and curator with a background in robotics, he focuses on issues such as the environment, social inequality, gender and disability, collaborating with artists and working with NGOs. 

“This dance is about women and the environment…culture and tradition,” Jeronimo explained. “[T]his pollution turns the water into this kind of black…like the darkening of our instincts, making men control women.

“[H]ow to deal with that, how to react to that…to find a reckoning, find reconciliation,” Jeronimo said, that is the question to look into.

For information on the performances held on Nov. 1 and 2 at the French Institute in Phnom Penh:  

-- Telegram: https://t.me/silverbelledance 

-- Tel.: 012-998-712 or 016-669-121


Cambodian dancer Chumvan Sodhachivy, or Belle, is shown in a scene of “Black Water,” a contemporary dance she created. Photo: Miguel Lopes Jeronimo

 

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