SeeArts Podcast #19 🎭🚀 Social Impact & Change 🌍 through Circus with Osman Khawaja 🤩 from Phare Ponleu Selpak 🤗

This podcast is with purpose and a call-to-action. This weekend, Phare - the Cambodian Circus is hosting the PhareGala21 and due to Covid it is happening online. In order to get more attention Phare has challenged itself and goes for the Guiness World Record for the longest Circus Show (24 hours + 1 minute). With over 90 artists and the approach of blending the different circus production into something unique, you can be excited.

In the conversation Osman shares his believe of the transformative power of the Arts and gives us an insight into the situation for Cambodia and especially the Phare Social Performing Enterprise through Corona


How to Join the Gala:
Worldwide! Settle down comfortably in front of your screen, at the most convenient hour in your time zone. There will be two repeated gala events to make sure as many people as possible can enjoy. 

**US / CANADA - SATURDAY MARCH 6TH**
7pm (PST) 
or 
9pm (CST)

**AUSTRALIA / ASIA / EUROPE - SUNDAY MARCH 7TH**
1.30pm (ACDT)
or 
10am or 8pm (ICT)
or 
2pm (CET) 
or 
1.30pm (CET for French speakers)

***HOW TO JOIN***
You can register in less than a minute here: www.bit.ly/pharegala21

*****WHO WE ARE***** 

Phare Phare Ponleu Selpak was founded more than a quarter of a century ago, by nine Cambodians, who grew up in a refugee camp after surviving the genocide of the Khmer Rouge, and their French arts teacher. Resilience and hope has been in Phare’s DNA from the very beginning, and from a simple arts school it blossomed into the multi-faceted creative hub it is today. 

Phare educates and trains thousands of children and youth who come from challenging backgrounds. Most receive a mainstream education which helps them thrive as adults, but others become artists, performers and musicians who keep Cambodia's creative culture alive after its almost total destruction by the Khmer Rouge. We offer them social support, education and arts programs so they can build their future and support their families through creative careers.

*****WHY THIS EVENT IS ESSENTIAL FOR OUR SURVIVAL*****

Over the years we have sought not to rely on handouts for our work and reached 60% financial self-sustainability through ticket sales to our celebrated and famous circus. Unfortunately, COVID-19 shut down our performances and left us with a dramatic shortfall. Today we are very concerned about our community and the most vulnerable who depend on our support on a daily basis. We need to raise money to keep our life-saving, life-changing programmes alive during this crisis.

Transcript

Osman Khawaja: 0:00

How do we get att ntion to Phare? I mean, it's a Cambodian organisati n. In some sectors in the world, it's well known, but how do you get global attention? And that w s a key, why not aim for a Guin ess World Record. And then we lo ked it up. There was no record or the longest circus show. So i's actually a new record bei g set. And then Guinness W rld Record, approved our applic tion and also gave us guidelines around it. It has to be for exa ple, 24 hours o& ne minute lon. That's a huge challenge. We have 90 artists, all coming in from our arti school tha have graduated from that socia enterprise. They are coming in nd all our senior student ar ists are participat ng. So it's been a huge, huge prorduction oake this happe. You're going to get a big chal enge and

Fabian Seewald: 0:46

welcome back to the SeeArts podcast. My name is Fabian Seewald and today we're diving into the social impact of the circus arts and getting to know a project in Southeast Asia actually, actually in Cambodia, it's called Phare circus and how they are setting up a Guinness World Record. Welcome to SeeArts podcast we build a bridge between Arts and Business want to inspire you to see art. We have a podcast episode with purpose and a call to action. Osman Khawaja is the executive director of far Phare Ponleu Selpak. Phare Ponleu Selpak is a Cambodian based visual and performing arts school and educational institution. And together with their social Head Enterprise, they're preparing a Guinness World Record this weekend for a good cause and bring circus from Cambodia on the global digital stage. I'm super excited, because actually osmani meet. We met back in 2013 in Cambodia during my travels there. And I had the chance to both with it uncovered, but as well, Siem Reap and NGO that man was working at this time. And so I also got to know us man as a role model for for leadership, but as well, like he really believes in the power of human transformation that what he's brings to the table at his work. I'm even more excited to learn more about this ambitious, ambitious, I'm even more excited to learn more about the ambitious project of our gala 21 and learn more about the current challenges that foreign Cambodia is currently like, is currently experiencing. But as well inspire you dear listeners to dive with us into this podcast. Join us this weekend the online shows and learn how art transforms and changes people and how you can make a difference. So a warm welcome to us man from Stuttgart, to Cambodia.

Osman Khawaja: 2:43

Thank you for being here. It's been a while since your trip to Saudi Arabia.

Fabian Seewald: 2:48

Yeah, crazy, like more than more than seven years and we have been in steady touch to social media is allowing allowing this fun and we also had some plans to do other collaborations. But I think this is a nice restart. And let's hope that that things will work out. We'll work at found will work out fine.

Osman Khawaja: 3:07

We hope so we hope so we hope you can still come to Cambodia,

Fabian Seewald: 3:10

we will make will make this happen. Well, to kickstart this conversation give us a brief introduction into like the head enterprise, the head social enterprise, for performance, social enterprise and in your role in this enterprise. how you got involved there.

Osman Khawaja: 3:27

Okay, well, I'm I'm on the NGO, the association side, forming social enterprises. Our sister concern started about seven years ago, this show started in 2013. Actually, that's that's when you came to Siem Reap, and you had seen the performance there. In the very early stages, they still had no big top and then eventually, were able to invest in their own band and big tub. So the social enterprise was started really to employ our circus graduates and music graduates, because after training for 1012 years, the question was what's next for them out, there is no no real circus opportunities in Cambodia. And heading the international stage is very challenging. It's very competitive. And also the school was growing and needed, you know, big funding the budgets from early, early days, three, seven years ago, to today where we run at 1.2 $1.5 million budget. It's hard to sustain on donations and grants. And so the idea was okay, we need to do something to generate our own income. And you're very proud of this model. It's a unique model where the social enterprise which employs over graduates, and earns income from the school and we had hit 60% financial sustainability through the dividends and the royalties that social enterprise pays back to the school. So we were on the right path, and suddenly all our eggs are in one basket because it's the big top in theory, the social enterprise was 99% dependent. On the tourist market, and recovered, the borders closed, no tourist tsunami in the tourism industry is basically collapsed. And we don't know when that will come up again, hopefully towards the end of the year, something will pick up maybe next year. But it's, that means more one day of to the next, we really went from getting 60% of budget covered to nothing. So now this is about our survival, and going back to donors going back to the public and the community, to see us through this difficult time. Because the school has actually have to find a way to survive, we have over 1000 students in our programme, and closing the doors on them is not an option.

Fabian Seewald: 5:46

Well, thanks for the introduction I really like about the overall organisational structure, you both educate them, but afterwards, you also give them opportunities to work in the social enterprise to perform there. Because as you said, like the international stage is really competitive. And so it kind of like it not just give them education, it also gives them like a way into into the future. Can you give us a little bit of a background into like the situation in Cambodia, as well the importance of the arts, like how is it for like, what is a normal? Like? How does a normal kid grow up? And what are the normal opportunity they have? And how is far actually opening up new opportunities?

Osman Khawaja: 6:28

It's a very good question. Because part of what fire is all about here is to introduce arts into the public school education system as well. We haven't really reached our goal there yet, the government is now working on adding arts to the public curriculum, many years of work behind it, they need to train 1000s and 1000s of teachers in the arts to be able to do that. Up to now there is no arts education public school system. So what father's here as a large community school provides leisure classes to hundreds of students from the community here, we actually have a government public school on our campus with 550 students. And they have access to our arts programme from visual arts, drawing, painting, all the way to performing arts in dance, circus theatre and music. And the nice thing about leesha programme is they can come and try anything. So one day, one week, they can go to our classroom and say, Oh, I want to try dance, they can go to dance in whichever programme or subject that the students like, they can then continue and even go into vocational training and become professional artists. And that's what's really unique about far it's a it makes it unique in all of Cambodia that it has provides this foundation in arts and accessible programme to the general public.

Fabian Seewald: 7:47

Yeah, it's really great that you give them a free opportunity to experience what kind of artistic expression you're looking for and be just like as a leisure activity or also, maybe sometimes it's barks this what is this one for diving deeper into the performing arts or into music and I think that's, that's a great thing that even like in Germany, we have the opportunities but also like some I see people have to push in that direction. Some people like your parents are you go to ballet, you you can try an instrument, but I like that you go there with such a wide horizon and give them an opportunity to try out and from there and also develop, develop further on. Well, you already you already covered a bit of like the the challenges. When we were talking it was during the pandemic, you also mentioned that actually for Cambodia, it's several waves of the pandemic, maybe like the pandemic, as the virus is not hitting it so hard. But also No, no tourists coming in. And then later on maybe like the missing infrastructure to really cope with the pandemic on such a good level. Tell us a little bit on like the journey of your last 12 months, you said like stopping was, was definitely not an option because you have so many students. But how did you? How did you react? What new ideas that actually merge? Because sometimes also Christ's are catalysts for creativity for new ideas to reach things, something I think you you have already like a perfect system. But what new ideas that come up with also signed earnings from the last 12 months that you could share with our listeners, as well, like from your perspective.

Osman Khawaja: 9:22

I mean, initially, when this whole crisis started, of course, this shows the public performances at first to close and the school also, there's nobody really knew where this was going. But in April, about four weeks after a closure, we reopened slowly in smaller groups, you know, knowing we had a better understanding. At that time. What's the real situation on the ground in Cambodia, Cambodia had very, very few, you know, COVID cases. So firstly, for us, was the question, do we open the gates or do we keep these kids locked out and when we spent 25 years pulling them off to the streets away from drugs out of trouble, and by closing the gates Someone was able to they're going to be back into these difficult situations. So we have to make a decision, we open taking care of the government protocols required for smaller classes and hygiene. So we did that. And by June, we are already full, the art classes are full again, for our visual arts programme, vocational training, we tried online classes, and that was something I think everyone around the world has tried, it didn't really work as well, because you know, these classes require them to have access to the computers and the software. And they don't have it out in the villages where the students were, or where they were home. So we then did opened up again and bring them in smaller groups on a rotating basis. Everything has been delayed. Normally, they would graduate in July last year, but they didn't December. But the business community still had opened up in front. And so the students that intern at the Graduate graphic design animation students that in turn, were actually accepted. So we continued, everything was a bit, you know, taken step by step, day by day, but we had to adjust as we went along. One of the realities of the social enterprise, of course, they have to really adapt to all the COVID hygiene protocols that are required. They reopen with Mikan shows one of our biggest challenges, and how do we bring in local audience, arts and culture in Cambodia is still something of a luxury its locals cannot afford performances shows, at least what it what they should be paying to make it feasible to make to make sustainable. And we don't have government subsidies for our programming. So every air if there's anyone putting on the show, somebody the public has to pay for it. And generally, the public can afford it. And that's our biggest challenge. Even with reduced ticket prices, it's very difficult to get Cambodians adore to watch our performances. So that's something that we are really pushing, and how do we get the local Cambodians engaged with for their own arts and culture. And it's not it's not surprising given that it's not in school system that they they don't have that level of appreciation for it. It's a it's a very young population as well. And that is very much focused on culture. And, but building audiences around theatre shows or musicals, or even our circus shows is, it's an uphill battle, but we're doing what we can. And this is also an talk about our upcoming Guinness World Record, it's really to bring a sense of pride to circus and no, it's a Guinness World Record for Cambodia. And for Cambodia, there'll be a sense of meaning or a matter of pride as well. And hopefully that will encourage them to visit and pay for performances.

Fabian Seewald: 12:59

Great, super excited about this word record, like how did you and your team came up with the idea of the gala? 21 What are what are the goals? And you said it's part of like, being proud of Kaymer and Cambodian culture and in putting a word out like hey, what what we are doing here and also the well the nice construction that that you have with with the enterprise but also also kind of like put it on a global stage. Tell us a little bit more about the gala the different parts and how people can get involved.

Osman Khawaja: 13:32

Yeah, sure. So the gala It all started with a physical gold annually and of course Bitcoin we couldn't do that. So maybe like let's go virtual and mentor happened last year, we push the push because it was quite challenging. But we've had some great help from many people and volunteers and engage with the company in the US calling job productions that have guided us through the process. And now we are ready for this weekend. It's basically a one hour virtual gala has twice to meet the different time zones that are based in and and we're really happy because we have over 900 people now who have signed up you know we would never be able to achieve that in a physical gala Of course in person. So to have this is it's it's also it's what it has its challenges but also opportunities and this great opportunity to connect with people globally. We mostly never connect with and I just won a one hour period and gala is will be hosted live but with a lot of content produced specifically for the gala some interviews with our artists, you know from the founders myself. So it is of course a big push to help people recognise the need that we have the financial need, and have people donate. Many, many people have signed up I've already put in their donations. We are taking it to a wider skin, sort of a broad audience. So our Ask is quite minimal, let's say, requesting people to give $10 for a month for up to a year or$120. Up front, if they don't want to do a monthly donation. It's really about the long term sustainability, and building long term support. But with the smaller asked me, we are able to make the gala also accessible to a lot more people because we understand, government's been tough for many, many people around the world. So asking for a smaller amount of spectrum, a larger base will hopefully still enable us to reach our fundraising target. Yeah. And going back, I think going back to the Guinness World Record leading into that was the idea was, how do we get attention too far? I mean, it's a Cambodian organisation. In some sectors in the world, it's well known, but how do you get global attention. And that was a pain, why not aim for a Guinness World Record. And then we looked it up, there was no record for a longer circus show. So it's actually a new record being set. And then Guinness World Record, approved our application and also gave us guidelines around it. It has to be, for example, 24 hours, one minute long, that's a huge challenge. We have 90 artists, all coming in from our artists that have graduated from that social enterprise, they are coming in, and all our senior student artists are all participating. So it's been a huge, huge production to make this happen. You're going to get a challenge. And there are other requirements, for example, no act can be repeated. So you have to be very creative and create a new tax for 24 hours. So and we need to have 50 people in the audience, which we were, yeah, was, will we I think so to make it even though there's been an outbreak and pnom Penh in Cambodia, but we we are following strict guidelines, all visitors will have to wear masks and go through the hygiene protocols. And there'll be only 50 people are required from Guinness World Record site. So we'll have enough room to have them seating distance, you know, but it's socially what we call the physical distance setting. So I think we'll make it the challenge is having people come in at one in the morning, two in the morning, three in the morning, but we have had a great response from the community and I think it would be a lot of fun for them and all of course, because it's a Guinness World requirement that you must have 50 people in the audience so everyone who's there will be a Guinness world record holder as well so they won't get a certificate for participating in a Guinness World Record.

Fabian Seewald: 17:41

But it's true and I like the idea of like thinking about how can you creatively and innovatively create more attention about it than using Guinness World Record and then they give you some kind of restriction and then you have to get creative again with like how many persons Do you need and and for sure, like we all missed the live event but I also feel that digital events and the gallery you're setting up also have a currently huge potential to reach out to wider audiences and once we can be travelling again in one two years or one two, going back to whatever the new normal will look like maybe this will also give you an outreach to large audience and put you on the on the global map that if you aren't seeing reports on Cambodia, you have to come you have to come to visit I also actually exactly and and I'm super excited to connect as well with the community we're going to put the links for the registration in in there as well. And as you said like it's really cool to have even like a one time donation or become become more involved and do do a monthly a monthly donation to help to help this organisation to to currently survive but then thrive again. And you've also like with the with the circus they've been to different countries from Korea to Germany, Norway so and I've seen I've seen the show we we actually watched the show together was really like a very beautiful way integrating Cambodian and Kaymer culture human history into like contemporary circus with life music so we're really well made high high quality so i can i can do more than once we have the chance to travel again you have to experience it vividly. But this weekend, you have a master in the calendar to watch.

Osman Khawaja: 19:27

And the nice thing about this weekend is that the Guinness World Record we are actually combining stringing together all our amazing shows so they have been tied together. So people who don't who know a few or have seen one or two they have the opportunity to actually binge watch all our shows. It's like going on Netflix and binge watching an entire series in one go. So you can stay with us for 24 hours we will have a YouTube link will be streamed and watch all our shows and of course additional stuff and new stuff that's been added to it as well. You

Fabian Seewald: 20:00

I think that's that's a good way of binge watching, binge binge watching, binge watching circus. But what one question maybe about the format, but because I'm as well as a clown and in circus context, I'm always interested about interaction possibilities. You have a small live audience. What do you think about what do you how do you plan interactions? Is there going to be a chat feature? How can people around the globe because if you already have 900 registered and let's hope that we can, we can come up with up to 2000? How can they interact? Is there a chat? Is there maybe like a live Zoom Room where they could share because I feel like a current challenge for these digital events? How do people feel the goosebumps that everybody's seeing in the audience? How can we translate this into the virtuality just comment? Or did you also come up with some, some thoughts about that for for this gala?

Osman Khawaja: 20:49

And that's always challenging, as you were asking earlier. What have you done during this time have pushed us in different directions. And part of that is how do we take our shows digital twin a challenge because that feeling that you get sitting in a live audience goosebumps, it's really hard to replicate online, and all our shows are with live music, and they are beautifully choreographed. And, and when you're not there, it is tough to capture that. But with regards to this gala, we're using a platform called attend defy everyone registers and logs in. And they will be automatically in the community chat there. And can comment and can leave messages outside of that when the the, that's only for the hour, an hour. But the full marathon will be streamed on YouTube. And of course, there's space for people to leave comments. And we'll be watching those comments and see what people have to say, and hopefully be able to be able to get back.

Fabian Seewald: 21:50

Cool. Yeah, well, that that sounds great. I'm excited to learn it. Because I'm also Yeah, thinking about what are ways to really not just use the digital space as a substitute, but also create new and that's what I also like about the overall fire concept that you're also integrating like 2d and 3d animation in the programmes. And then you also like not just teaching them the the analogue art, but also analogue and digital arts because somebody's like, we're in this liminal space in between. And so it's interesting to, but to also get like the digital dexterity to them, also for circus painting, where the pizza pies and stuff like that I think technology is getting into all these spaces. And the power really happens if you merge them together. And I'm excited to see as well like the creative fusion of all these beautiful shows, I think you produced over 20 different shows already, or I'm not sure how many right now you're blending them all into one unique piece. And that's, that's a beautiful challenge that yeah, that we can see on this weekend. Well, I have I have one philosophy, I believe that art changes people and people from there change the world, I kind of experienced this myself when I was in Mexico, also working in social services and, and teaching kids how to juggle but not to become the next best circus artist but to do to create self esteem. And on one side, do you agree with this statement? But as well? Like, how do you feel that the art can kind of like, enrich enrich our world? And also like, how did this become as well, your, your mission, as your experience and as a role as a director right now?

Osman Khawaja: 23:30

Yes, I totally agree with you, our our mission for is changing lives through the heart. So it's very much to what your philosophy is, as well. And that's what we see. That's what we have been about for the past 27 years. And that change could be very personal, it could be for somebody for an individual or it could be for change for the community, it could be a change in thinking ideology, that changes depending on the person that is, you know, if you have been impacted. For us, it's a it's a it's a change we have seen in the community and changes in in our students in the in their families, socio economic change, and also in the change in people's own ability to deal with difficulties and challenges their resilient set of bills. So, yes, there is definitely a change happening through the art exposure and the the being involved is very deeply in it. We find when we have our artists, being performers and taking, you know from stage or telling their own stories, having the chance to improvise, interesting things come out and that is the art gives them that ability to express what they might normally not express but also to to bring, you know, to deal with dealing with certain issues and challenges that otherwise they wouldn't be able to and it's a safe, safe space, a safe way to do that. So, um, I mean, for me here, Cambodia is a city that I'm in, is in, Amman was always known as a cultural hub of Cambodia before the primary which time and it's no has it sort of lost that over the years, but the underlining creativity is very much there. And I think it has a chance to be the real creative to the familiar, and because the art brings in a unique identity to humanity, and, and that's very much here, it's just under the surface, and it's, I think, just, you know, wanting to come out, and I think we just need a little bit more of what far does to continue for years and, and have everything from the education system to even the when I was out, graduates, when they, when they finished the work they set up there, some of them have set up their own artistic companies and you know, giving them that space creating a community around that, that will really help you know, one day I think it'll just grow and beautiful space here for for art and creation.

Fabian Seewald: 26:15

Awesome, yeah. And I love that you also empower them to get into entrepreneurship and build their own companies that it's like it's open, you open up kind of the doors, the windows for people to look through, and then from there, and obviously, you have to do the steps, you can guide them some part of the way but from there on, it's really opening up opportunities and as well that it's that it's not opening up in just the individualised but also impacting families and from there so it's kind of like a spiral and like it's like, like a movement you're getting like an impulse and from there on the magic is happening that's That's powerful. Well thanks thanks for thanks for that work. And what is the best way for for you how people can can support far is it currently through donations? Or is this well sometimes human resources and like manpower or women power that you could need or collaborative ways to get engaged and and to help to help and support

Osman Khawaja: 27:13

Yes, we're always looking for human resources we have had many volunteers come through Of course called targeted parent restrictions as possible. But we know there are few people really wanting to come come to Baltimore once the borders open, so we look forward to welcoming them there are many travelling artists that stopped by and enrich the lives of the students and introduce them to something new and different. So we are always open for this welcoming them here. But at this stage, of course, our survival depends on the the the our finances, the team has done amazing or they've been such a strong committed group, it many of our most of our teachers, our students, or they grew up here the founders look after them, they defend them, they give them class of education and and now they're working here so they're not just teachers, they're really part of the family. And everyone came together showed great solidarity when COVID hit because it was like okay, we are now only have our reserves, we have no income coming in. So what do we do? Do we close some programmes? Do we lay some people off? And they all you know, I put this question to them and that was I think part of the challenge in this being this leadership role at this time was what's going to be our next move and and far has a very very special spirit and that was like I don't think it was my decision to make it could not be a top down decisions involving them and saying, Well what would they like to do? And all of them said no, we need to keep the programme going because so many students are dependent on us and and we need to save space that far provides but they all agreed to take pay cuts so we have had everyone's been on big pay cut for the whole year and continue now because we had to stretch our reserves while we continued fundraising. So we have done a lot in our own to to survive and now we really need support of the community to give us help us through this this year and probably next year as well until we can restart a lot of our income generating activities. So yes, a financial need is our biggest need at this point.

Fabian Seewald: 29:26

All right, so yeah community get involved at some point you can collaborate with white as well like we don't do at the giant puppet parade but for now it is well sending sending some money sending some funds to keep the circus Ryan to because the show the show must go on. Well, to wrap this up. What is your your call to action for the gala? What are your last words of wisdom for for this podcast? What do you want to share with the community because I like this. Well, the leadership part that you said, it's not a it's not a top down decision that you can make, but it's really it was Kind of like with a committed with a committed community and co workers kind of like the decision, I felt I felt as I hear it, it was just carried on, we have to continue because we have a responsibility and if we let it go right now 25 years of of energy would be, would be come to waste because yes COVID is changing the game but you took the leadership as well, how you open up the decision to kind of get self organised in this way spark more motivation to keep on going.

Osman Khawaja: 30:33

Yes, and I think this is the most human resources are the most important when it comes to an organisation, especially in the arts organisation, and, and nothing can sort of replace that, that spirit, the dollar everyone each individual gear brings. So for the gala, well, I would encourage everyone to sign up because it's only an hour of everyone's time, it will give a very good overview picture and some also snippets of the insight and the spirit of and if people feel that sense worth supporting, then request them to help them make a donation. Of course, even outside of the gala, happy to stay in touch to connect. We have our Facebook page fabulous of your website as well fire ps.org and we are always in you know happy to engage with anyone for collaboration or other ideas on how to help us.

Fabian Seewald: 31:32

Great well, plenty of calls to action like them, follow them, donate some money and definitely watch this one hour show get together with your friends with distance or with your family close together and enjoy the circus show because we all are missing this wipes and you can dive into very rich and to certain extent like Unknown, Unknown culture. And I really experienced this show like really like strong and remember these these days in in CME Group with us, man, thanks a lot for for taking the time to jump on this conversation. That's the beautiful thing as well, in the digital space that we have the time to reconnect from time to time play together and well through this podcast also put some spotlight on the great things that you're doing. Thanks a lot for your efforts and so much appreciated to to take the time

Osman Khawaja: 32:22

to reach out and offer this face for us. So we look forward to seeing many of your followers on the gala this weekend.

Fabian Seewald: 32:31

Let's make it happen. Yeah, well you heard the call to action, join the gala and join the circus wives. It really changed my life. It connects us to our playfulness is good for our body, our soul. Let's play and enjoy your life. Enjoy your weekend whenever and wherever you're listening to this one poll on Instagram at SeeArts. Now to get inspired and let's see art.