Brodal Serei (Freestyle Boxing)

Brodal Serei, meaning “freestyle boxing” examines the personal history and lives of the Khmer boxer beyond the thrills and spills of the boxing ring in present-day Cambodia. Weaving dance, drama and storytelling, Emmanuèle Phuon’s latest work is an intimate portrayal of the fighter’s psyche and way of living.

Inspired by the life of professional Cambodian boxer Hem Saran, the work features audio recordings of personal stories told by the well-known fighter, juxtaposed with live traditional Khmer music and a hypnotic electronic score by Zai Tang (UK/Singapore). Dancers of Amrita Performing Arts’ embody the masculine and rugged energy of fighters, with choreography inspired by fight movements, physical regimes and the rituals of Khmer boxing. Brodal Serei casts a spotlight on the mind and body of the Cambodian boxer, and the success and struggle of a cultural form where economy and sport are intertwined intricately.

A former dancer of Baryshinikov’s White Oak Dance Project, who has worked with renowned contemporary artists such as Yvonne Rainer and Meg Stuart to name a few, choreographer Emmanuèle Phuon continues her long-term partnership with Amrita Performing Arts with Brodal Serei. Together, they create works which examine relationships between tradition and the contemporary, set against the backdrop of the past and the current social milieu of Cambodia.

Emmanuele Phuon
Amrita Performing Arts

About Amrita Performing Arts and Emmanuèle Phuon

Amrita Performing Arts is an International NGO based in Phnom Penh, and one of the strongest contemporary dance companies from Cambodia, with a repertoire by choreographers such as Arco Renz, Eko Supriyanto, and Peter Chin. Through Amrita’s work, the company aims to translate the experience of current social conditions into the dance parameters of time, space and physical energy; exploring the themes of emergence from isolation towards integration within the complexities of the contemporary world and in the context of a transformed country.

Emmanuèle Phuon is French-Cambodian and lives between Brussels (Belgium) and New York. She started her training with the Royal Ballet of Cambodia in Phnom Penh at age 6 and is a graduate of Conservatoire National de Danse d’ Avignon (France).In New York, she has performed with the Elisa Monte Dance Company and Baryshnikov’s White Oak Dance Project. She had the privilege of dancing in works by Paul Taylor, Trisha Brown, Deborah Hay, Mark Morris, Lucinda Childs, John Jasperse, among many others.

About da:ns festival

To all dance lovers and those curious, Esplanade’s da:ns festival invites you to fall in love with dance through a full-hearted celebration of movement this October. With powerful performances from around the world, exciting new creations and a wide range of opportunities to learn different kinds of dance, this 11-day festival will open your mind, lift your spirit and get your body moving.