Cambodian Artists Project

The Cambodian Artists Project was dedicated to the cultural preservation and growth of traditional and contemporary Cambodian performing arts. NEFA began to work with Cambodian American artists and their counterparts from the Royal University of Fine Arts (RUFA) in Phnom Penh in the early 1990s, originally seeking to recapture traditional repertory of Cambodian classical dance. Since the project's beginning, a formal program was developed to support Khmer artistic communities in the U.S. and Cambodia.

This project is among NEFA's archived projects. 
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Overview

The Cambodian Artists Project was dedicated to the cultural preservation and growth of traditional and contemporary Cambodian performing arts. NEFA began to work with Cambodian American artists and their counterparts from the Royal University of Fine Arts (RUFA) in Phnom Penh in the early 1990s, originally seeking to recapture traditional repertory of Cambodian classical dance. Since the project’s beginning, a formal program was developed to support Khmer artistic communities in the U.S. and Cambodia. 

Project Description

The Cambodian Artists Project aims to strengthen Cambodian communities in Cambodia and the United States by:

• Supporting both traditional and contemporary Cambodian performing arts as they are researched, shared, and presented in Cambodia and other countries.
• Filling the need for network building among Cambodian communities through support for professional development, creative sharing, and collaboration.
• Refining and sharing this program as a replicable model of international collaboration to the field.

Partners and Funders

The Cambodian Artists Project was a partnership between Asia Society, the Royal University of Fine Arts in Phnom Penh, and NEFA. Other organizations and individuals that have provided their expertise and support to the project include:

• Asia Society, New York, NY
• Royal University of Fine Arts, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
• Angkor Dance Troupe, Lowell, MA
• Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, Becket, MA
• Khmer Arts Academy, Long Beach, CA
• Lisa Booth Management Inc., New York, NY
• Center for the Arts, Wesleyan University, Middleton, CT
• Douglas DeNatale, Ph.D., Boston, MA
• Fred Frumberg, Amarita Performing Arts, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
• Toni Shapiro Phim, Ph.D., Merion Station, PA
• Clifton Taylor, lighting designer, New York, NY
• Khatharya Um, Ph.D., Berkeley, CA

Funders

The Cambodian Artists Project was made possible with generous funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, Asian Cultural Council, NEFA's National Dance Project, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Additional funding for the 2001 Dance, the Spirit of Cambodia tour was made by an anonymous donor, Fund for Folk Culture, the James L. Robison Foundation, Rajika and Anupam Puri, and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. The Lowell, MA residency was made possible in part with a grant from the Theodore Edson Parker Foundation.