The Royal Ballet of Cambodia: a traditional dance performance at the Musée du Quai Branly

From February 11, 2025, the Musée du Quai Branly will be hosting a new exhibition on the art of clothing from the Orient to the Rising Sun. For the occasion, a fine artistic program is planned, with concerts and a dance performance by the Royal Ballet of Cambodia, a sacred art listed as an intangible cultural heritage. On Saturday, March 8 at 3 pm and 8 pm, and on Sunday, March 9 at 5 pm, these dancers will offer you a moment out of time.

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The Royal Ballet of Cambodia perpetuates and reinvents one of the oldest and most refined dances in the world. Magnified by sumptuous costumes and the delicacy of the apsara dancers ' supple, graceful gestures, this Khmer dance tradition was almost wiped out by the genocide of this people in the 20th century. Endowed with a sacred and symbolic role, its repertoire immortalizes the founding legends of the Khmer people, and harks back to the origins of the great choreographic traditions of Brahmin India and Southeast Asia.

For over a thousand years, this sacred art has accompanied royal ceremonies such as coronations, weddings, funerals and festivals, and is considered by Cambodians to be theemblem of Khmer culture. An orchestra accompanies the dance, while a chorus of women comment on the plot and underline the emotions mimed by the dancers, considered the kings' messengers to the gods and ancestors.

The ticket gives access to the permanent collections and temporary exhibitions on the day of the show, so make the most of it!

Au fil de l'or: the brilliant exhibition on gold in the art of fashion at the Musée du Quai Branly - photos
The Musée du Quai Branly takes us into a sparkling universe, where gold meets the art of textiles. Travel from the Orient to the Land of the Rising Sun with the exceptional exhibition "Au fil de l'or", on view from February 11 to July 6, 2025. [Read more]