Phnom Penh, Jan. 31 (BUS): Cambodian dragon and lion dancer Gwenon Virak gathers his band together in a circle, before they let out team cheers and begin rehearsing their performance in the Lunar New Year – one of them the only ones among the pandemic-stricken year.
Junoon, 28, has loved dancing since he was a child, and grew up near a Chinese-style temple in the capital, Phnom Penh. Seven years ago, he asked his teacher to teach him to dance and joined a band known as the Bodhi Tree Band. Reuters reported that he eventually became a team captain.
“We should do this dance every day,” he said during rehearsal. “This requires complete focus and motivation.”
The carrier employee used to supplement his usual income of about $300 a month with lion and dragon dances, and earn about $20 performing local events. This has dried up completely during the pandemic, with the number of shows dropping to about one per month instead of five.
The Sino-Cambodian League estimates there are about eight teams in Phnom Penh, but Gwenon fears that number will shrink.
“I want the younger generation to stick to this tradition and make it more famous in the future,” he said.
Khmer Chinese have always been an integral part of Cambodian society. Historical records estimate that the first Chinese came to the area in the 13th century.
During the Khmer Rouge era in the 1970s, society was devastated, as the regime launched an offensive against well-educated urban merchants. But in recent years, old ties with China have brought prosperity to the Khmer Chinese as China has vigorously promoted investment in Cambodia’s economy.
Gnuon said he hopes to introduce some new techniques to draw attention to lion and dragon dance, such as increasing the number of dancers on high poles, or using larger poles.
“We will keep all our existing technologies and create some new styles in order to make the dance more popular or to be able to compete with other teams,” he said.
MI