Apsara Dance

Posted for no reason other than the world is an interesting place...

Apsara dance is from Cambodia. Apsara are something like the female woodland faerie of Celtic tradition.

In its Khmer traditions it dates back to about the 12th century. It vanished for 500 years after the Angkor kingdom was sacked during the 15th century by invaders from what is now Thailand.

During the mid 20th century, Queen Sisowath Kosamak Naryrath decided to recreate the dance, which was preserved in temple bas-reliefs, and her granddaughter became the first professional Apsara dancer of the modern era.

It was nearly wiped out again during the murderous rule of the ultra-Left Khmer Rouge regime. In 1995 it was seen again in public for the first time.

Like Western ballet it requires skills that can only be learned by rigorous training.

Here is a related video with some nice images. Song is by an artist named Sen Ranuth and is in the Khmer language.