The Sovanna Phum Art Association has found a new location for its theater, avoiding closure of the popular Phnom Penh arts venue by a matter of weeks.
Sovanna Phum counts more than 200 members who have for years presented different shows every week, usually featuring Cambodia’s traditional art forms, from shadow puppets to classical dance and masked-theater lakhaon kaol to drums.
The theater is the only venue in the capital running weekly programs for the performing arts, but due to a rent increase at its current location on Street 30, which it could not handle with the global economic crisis, the association has had to find a new location.
Sovanna Phum Artistic Director mann Kosal said Friday that a new location just off Monivong Boulevard, near the Boeng Trabek High School, has been found and parts of the theater have been dismantled already, though tonight’s scheduled shadow puppet show with live music will still go ahead as planned.
“I think that we will build the same type of theater as at the old place, because the new place and the old lots seem to be of similar size,” Mr Kosal said.
Since funding for the association is derived solely from ticket sales, the sale of handicrafts such as leather shadow puppets and occasional performance commissions are required for the theater just to make ends meet.
The decrease in tourism this ear due to the global economic crisis has especially affected the association as its audience usually includes a large number of foreign tourists who also buy handicrafts after the shows, Mr Kosal said.
Cambodians attend the theater in large numbers, but they are free not to pay entrance fees and tend not to buy handicrafts, he said.
Rent at the theater’s new location will be lower than rent so far on the current lot, Mr Kosal said. “The landlord has agreed to give us a five-year lease on the place,” and this long-term contract will greatly facilitate matters, Mr Kosal said.
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