The culture ministry’s Department of Performance Art started filming Mahabharata on October 24. CULTURE MINISTRY
A Cambodian art group is rehearsing Mahabharata, an ancient drama, in preparation for their debut performance at the upcoming the ASEAN Unity for Peace Cultural Festival on November 10-11.
Chhieng Chhordapheak, deputy director of the Department of Performing Arts, told The Post that the rehearsals were to ensure that the standard of the performance will be as high as possible, as it will be broadcast live on November 11, the second day of the event.
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Ming Kosny, secretary of state at the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and chairwoman of the ASEAN Unity for Peace Cultural Festival, visited rehearsals of Mahabharata last week at the Department of Performing Arts’ theatre.
She met with performers and their teachers, and praised the efforts they were putting in to promoting this beautiful example of the Kingdom’s cultural heritage. She was pleased with their progress, and was proud that they would soon share the piece with a national and international audience, according to the ministry.
Cambodia will showcase various art forms, including classical and traditional dances, along with a number of musical performances. More than 100 artists are scheduled to appear, he added.
“On the night of November 10, there will be a video broadcast of performances by several ASEAN member countries. Seven dancers from the Royal University of Fine Arts will demonstrate the traditional dance & Laksmey Apsara Dance&, and the 17 members of the department’s arts group will perform a traditional rice cultivating dance,” he said.
There will also be a demonstration of traditional musical instruments. The song Prey Prasit – written by the late King Father – will be performed by a combination of the department’s artists and students of the Secondary School of Fine Arts. Finally, 20 students from the school will perform the ASEAN Friendship Dance.
On November 11, Cambodia’s mixed drama Mahabharata will be performed by a group of 80 artists. The 40 minute performance will be followed by an Indian troupe, and the ASEAN Friendship Dance will be performed – this time by students from the fine arts university.
According to the book Moha Phearat Yuth, compiled and edited by Tep Pitur Chhim Krasem, Mahabharata is one of the great epics, which is set prior to the ancient story of Ramayana, which occurred in India.
The tale’s origins were considered a mystery for many years, as it is not a well known piece. The story is carved on a panel at Angkor Wat, however.
Tep Pitur Chhim Krasem, who was born around 1880, was a senior government official who was responsible for compiling a cultural history of the Kingdom. He conducted his research in Pali, Thai and French, in addition to Khmer.
He published a compilation of Khmer literature, culture, and history in the journal Kampuchea Sorya, and entered a comprehensive guide into the nation’s archives.
More recently, a 1,200 page book examining the Mahabharata was published in 2019 by professor Thon Hin. The Khmer Writer’s Association issued a second edition of the late professor’s work.
Hin’s stated reason for translating the ancient work into contemporary Khmer was to raise awareness of the masterful story telling of the earliest Khmer. He believed that the lessons of following the path of dharma – inherent in the story – were still relevant today. In addition, he wanted to preserve the piece as an important pre-Angkorian piece of the national identity.
