Khmer Classical Dance

Khmer classical dance was the dance of the royal court, and anyone who has looked at the walls of Angkor will recognise it immediately: the same impossibly back-curved fingers, the same tilted head and slow, deliberate weight shifts that the apsaras carved into the stone are holding. Dancers begin training as children to achieve that flexibility, and the vocabulary of gestures is precise, with each hand shape carrying meaning, performed to the shimmering percussion of a pinpeat ensemble. The tradition came close to being lost in the twentieth century, when very few trained dancers survived, and its rebuilding by those who did is the reason UNESCO recognises it as intangible cultural heritage. Performances run regularly in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, from full staged programmes at cultural centres to shorter shows, and the best are worth seeking out over the dinner-and-dance packages.

What you actually see

• The apsara dance - the signature solo of curved hands and slow gesture.
• The pinpeat ensemble - the gongs, xylophones and drums that accompany it.
• The costumes - the tightly stitched silk and gilded headdresses.
• The link to Angkor - the same poses as the carved apsaras on the temple walls.

When to go

Performances run year-round, most evenings in the tourist centres; quality varies enormously, so choose a dedicated cultural venue or a school performance over a hotel buffet show. Some training schools accept visitors during rehearsal hours, which is often more interesting than the polished performance.

Honest expectations

Most of what is sold to visitors is a shortened, simplified version staged alongside a buffet, and it bears the same relation to the real thing as a hotel flamenco show does to flamenco; a proper programme at a cultural institution is longer, slower and far better. Tickets for the good ones sell out. The slow pace and unfamiliar musical scale ask something of the audience.

Nearby

The Royal Palace and National Museum in Phnom Penh hold related collections; Angkor's carved apsaras are near Siem Reap.