The 9x girl immerses herself in Khmer ethnic dance
WVR - An endless passion for the art of traditional dance has nurtured a strong motivation for Thach Thi Ni Ta, Khmer girl born in 1997, to strive her best to preserve Khmer ethnic dance.
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| Thach Thi Ni Ta teaches dance to Khmer children in Tan My commune, Tra On district, Vinh Long province. (Photo: VNA) |
Thach Thi Ni Ta was born and raised in a rural area of Tan My commune (Tra On district, Vinh Long province) – home of number of Khmer people. When Ni Ta was still a small child, watching artists from dance troupes performing, she loved the dance and went home to practice on her own. In the 8th grade, she participated in dance activities at school and was selected for a talent dance class, thereby gaining more motivation and confidence to to perform whenever there was a ceremony or party in the locality.
After graduating from high school, while many of her peers chose a wide range of majors such as Economics, Agriculture, Law, Pedagogy, etc., Ni Ta was determined to pass the exam to get in the major of Traditional Dance at Tra Vinh University. She spent much effort and practices to understand the beauty of the dance and the way to convey the "soul" through each dance and gesture. Not only dancing, Ni Ta also knows how to use traditional musical instruments and theater forms of the Khmer people.
Finishing university, Ni Ta has worked at the Vinh Long provincial Culture and Art Centre (CAC) as one of the core members of the Khmer ethnic dance team. She has participated in many cultural and artistic activities to serve ethnic minorities during holidays, anniversaries, or festivals.
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| Thach Thi Ni Ta practices dancing with members of the Khmer ethnic dance group of the Vinh Long provincial Cultural and Arts Center (CAC). (Photo: VNA) |
Through her working time with the Center, Ni Ta realized that Khmer ethnic children had little chance to approach traditional dance. Therefore, she boldly proposed opening ethnic dance classes in districts where many Khmer ethnic people live such as Tra On, Tam Binh, Binh Minh, and Vung Liem.
During the class, she not only tries to shape each movement and gesture for the students but also encourages and supports them to take part in competitions and performances as a way to hone their skills.
Since the free tutoring classes for ethnic children in 2018, up to now, through her training, hundreds of children have become dancers at districts or provinces’ cultural centers.
"I have conditions to study and master many dances, and now I want to pass them on to my students," she shared.
"Through the class, the students feel confident to perform on stage. This is useful for them to express their talents. It is also an opportunity for them to spread their Khmer cultural identity to everyone."
Mr. Le Hoang Nam, deputy director of the Vinh Long CAC, said that Ni Ta is an outstanding dancer who has shown responsibility and dedication to traditional culture.
He highly appreciated the contribution of the 9x "dancing girl" to the Center in implementing the National Target Program on preserving national identity that the Provincial Party Committee has concretized into a program for the Center to implement. In particular, the Center has established two art and cultural teams of the Khmer ethnic group.
In the coming time, the Center will continue to create better conditions for Ni Ta to open dance classes to foster Khmer people's artistic talents, and organise more performances for local people. According to Nam, this will contribute to creating a youthful force for artistic movements in areas where there are many Khmer people.
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