Tuesday, April 27, 2010
"Dancing Across Borders"
Sokvannara Sar was just 16 when Anne Bass saw him preform in Cambodia as a ballet dancer. She was so inspired that she moved him to her sprawling Connecticut House and tried to enroll him in a New York Ballet school. However, she and Sokvannara soon learned that Cambodian ballet and western ballet are quite different. EVen though he was a performer in Cambodia, he was at the skill level of a 10 year old in the U.S. This is because the Cambodian dance style is "much closer to the ground" and does not have as many spins or leaps. Ms. Bass does a large amount of charity work in Cambodia, pushing the arts after the destructive campaign of the khmer rouge. Sy (nickname for Sokvannara Sar) did not make it into a ballet school right away and so Bass hired an instructor. He learned very quickly and Bass took a video camera to his practices to help him learn and perfect his techniques. He made it into the Seattle Pacific NOrthwest Ballet and now at 25 is looking for something new. Bass turned all the footage from when she first saw him in Cambodia and his practices in America into a video called Dancing Across Borders, which is an award winning documentary.
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Marjory, I loved reading this blog post of yours! Not only was the story intriguing, but also particularly appealing to me for I enjoy dancing very much. I was wondering, though, if you have seen this documentary and if so what your thoughts on it were. If not, are you interested in seeing it? I feel as though it would be quite a thrill to watch. When you say that he is now "looking for something new," do you mean in terms of a new profession? If that is the case, this post very much reminds me of what Dr. Rice had to say when she spoke at assembly. How she thought pursued her passion for music and got to the point where she realized that it was just not the right fit; and look at how she ended up! I'm curious to see if Bass looks into professions revolving around the common thread of dance, or if he will investigate elsewhere. Great article!
ReplyDeleteThat's an incredible story. It's interesting to see someone from such a different background finally assume a bigger role in dance in the United States. Not many people are talented enough to do something like that. Is Sy looking for a career in Dance or another profession altogether. Hopefully he is successful in the rest of his endeavors.
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