Sisaphanta Prum

Prum Sisaphantha ព្រំ សុីសាផាន្ធា (3 June 1956, Phnom Penh) is a language teacher and historian of Khmer classical dance who, after studying in Singapore and Russia, was a trainee and researcher with the Khmer Classical Ballet from 1973 – 1975 before being forced into agricultural labor in Battambang and into exile by the Khmer Rouge régime.

While living in Japan, she decisively contributed to the research on Khmer Apsara dance, also training several Japanese and Cambodian dancers to master the time-honored performing art form. She is currently teaching dance at RUPP, Phnom Penh.

Main photo by Colin Grafton, 1974.