Phnom Penh, an ephemeral capital of live performance: a look back at the Chakto II meetings

During six days at the beginning of June, Phnom Penh changed its rhythm. Between the 5th and the 11th, the city saw nearly a hundred programmers, presenters, artists, authors, and journalists from Cambodia, France, and across Asia gather for the Chakto II professional meetings, the first event entirely dedicated to contemporary live performance in the Cambodian capital.

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A program designed as an accelerator

Led by the French Institute of Cambodia and the French Embassy, in partnership with Cambodian Living Arts and the Acting Art Academy, the program is organized by the French Institute of Cambodia and the French Embassy in Cambodia in partnership with Cambodian Living Arts and the Acting Art Academy. Chakto II extends work initiated the previous year. The original Chakto program, launched in 2025 and funded by the French Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, enabled sixty young Cambodian creators to receive training and structure their projects across four disciplines: dance, cinema, music, and comics. The Chakto program, funded by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and implemented in 2025, positioned itself at the intersection of four disciplines, allowing them to interact and enrich one another.

This second edition shifts gears. It is no longer only about training, but about connecting. Fanny Pagès, Deputy Director of the French Institute of Cambodia, summarizes the ambition: the goal is to bring in professionals so they can discover contemporary Cambodian creation and then support artists in their international dissemination. The idea is to bring in professionals so they can discover contemporary Cambodian creation and subsequently support artists in their international distribution. This marks a deliberate shift toward professionalization and the economic opportunities of the sector, continuing efforts carried out over several years to help artists structure their careers beyond creation alone. This new professional meetings program continues that approach, with a stronger focus on professionalization and economic outcomes.

A Cambodian scene emerging from Angkor’s shadow

The initial observation is clear. Internationally, Cambodia’s cultural image remains largely associated with Angkor and traditional art forms, even though the country is full of young talents who struggle to gain recognition due to a lack of visibility and international support. Cambodia’s cultural image is still often associated with Angkor and traditional art forms, while the country is teeming with young talents who struggle to express themselves due to insufficient visibility and support. It is precisely this evolving contemporary scene, driven by a new generation of artists, that these meetings sought to highlight. These professional meetings aim to shine a light on a contemporary scene in full transformation, led by a new generation of artists. As Fanny Pagès emphasizes, it is important to show that Cambodian creation is plural and also rooted in contemporary forms. It is important to demonstrate that Cambodian creation is diverse and also embedded in contemporary expressions.

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Thirteen productions, seven venues, one vibrant city

The meetings took place alongside the GOLDEN (r)AGE Performing Art Festival, the second edition of an event created to showcase to the general public the talents of a new generation of Cambodian artists trained at The Last Stage, an initiative led by the Acting Art Academy. As Cambodia’s first contemporary theater festival, the GOLDEN (r)AGE Performing Art Festival was born from the desire to reveal to the public the talents of a new generation of Cambodian artists trained at The Last Stage. After an exploratory edition in 2025, the festival reached full scale this year: thirteen productions staged across seven venues in the capital, including The Last Stage Riverside, Chenla Theatre, the French Institute of Cambodia, and the SOSORO Museum. The festival entered its full and ambitious format in 2026, with thirteen performances across seven venues, including The Last Stage Riverside, The Last Stage Aquation, Factory Phnom Penh, Chenla Theatre, the French Institute of Cambodia, Friends Futures Factory F3, and the SOSORO Museum. The Acting Art Academy itself is the result of the work of Karim Belkacem Saadi, a French director and playwright based in Cambodia, who founded a multidisciplinary theater training program there several years ago. Karim Belkacem Saadi created a theater academy in Phnom Penh, the Acting Art Academy, which offers multidisciplinary theater training.

Among the highlights was the play When I Find Myself (in Mirages), directed by French stage and opera director Frédéric Fisbach, performed in Khmer, French, and English with simultaneous surtitles. The production, directed by Frédéric Fisbach and performed in Khmer, French, and English with live surtitling, premiered in March 2026, marking Fisbach’s first collaboration with Khmer artists. The play follows a woman whose partner disappears, prompting her to search for him through social margins often avoided—addiction, prostitution, survival. The work follows a woman whose partner disappears, and in searching for him, she enters a world most people carefully avoid: addiction, prostitution, and marginal survival.

Another notable piece brought together international director Michael Laub and Cambodian choreographer Vanthy Khen, combining contemporary stage writing with the ancient codes of traditional Khmer dance, performed by nine dancers. This artistic encounter fused the contemporary stage language of international director Michael Laub with the millennia-old codes of traditional Khmer dance, led by choreographer Vanthy Khen, with nine performers on stage.

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Guests from across the international cultural network

The list of announced participants reflects the event’s regional ambition. Among those expected were Paul Rondin, Director of the International City of the French Language and former Deputy Director of the Avignon Festival; Shireen Binte Abdullah from Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay in Singapore; and Jeff Khan, Artistic Director of Asia TOPA in Australia. The expected participants included Paul Rondin, Director of the International City of the French Language and former Deputy Director of the Avignon Festival, Shireen Binte Abdullah from Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay in Singapore, and Jeff Khan, Artistic Director of Asia TOPA in Australia.

Six days of workshops, panel discussions, and networking sessions aimed at building lasting connections between Cambodia’s contemporary performing arts sector and international cultural networks. The six-day program included workshops, discussions, and networking sessions designed to strengthen ties between Cambodia’s contemporary performing arts sector and international cultural networks.

A deliberately timed event

The timing of the event is no coincidence. These meetings take place in the same year Cambodia is preparing to host the Francophonie Summit, giving them strategic significance: they affirm Phnom Penh’s position as a regional cultural hub and lay the groundwork for sustained international visibility for Cambodian performing arts. Chakto II fits into a strategic moment: as Cambodia prepares to host the Francophonie Summit, these meetings reinforce Phnom Penh’s role as a regional cultural crossroads and establish the foundations for lasting international visibility for Cambodian performing arts.

What comes next?

The next step is to turn momentum into results. The discussions initiated during these six days—co-productions, regional tours, cross-residencies—must now translate into concrete outcomes. If the momentum built since 2025 is any indication, the French Institute’s initiative appears to be on the right track: transforming Phnom Penh, long seen as a peripheral scene, into a key destination for those interested in contemporary artistic expression in Southeast Asia. The coming months will determine what follows, depending on how programmers who came to observe, listen, and perhaps already sketch their future seasons choose to act.