Agangamasor & His Magic Power, A New Cambodian Classical Dance Drama

The Cultural Committee of the Cambodian Buddhist Society is pleased to present the premiere of its new dramatic work in the classical Khmer music-dance-theater style. The opus conveys an episode of the Reamker (Cambodian version of the Indian Ramayana) never before seen on stage--the mythological world as it was prior to the birth of Preah Ream (Prince Rama). It features the eminent master dancers and musicians who have been teaching their art to students at the Cambodian Buddhist Society for decades. The performance also features several up and coming dancers and musicians trained under these masters.

Since 1989, the Cambodian Buddhist Society has held classes in Cambodian classical dance, Cambodian classical music, and Cambodian language. Master artists who fled Cambodia as a result of war, genocide, poverty, and destruction lead the dance and music classes. Most were part of the Khmer Classical Dance Troupe which relocated to the United States under the auspices of the National Endowment of the Arts /National Council for Traditional Arts in 1980. Agangamasor & His Magic Power marks a critical turning point for these masters and their students. The production, and the future work it inspires, breathes creative life back into the Khmer music and dance tradition.