Saturday, April 11, 2026
12 noon-3 pm
FREE
Join us at OACC for a colorful, family-friendly celebration of the New Year across Southeast Asia. The program will feature the luminous Cambodian youth of the Khmer Amathak Dance Troupe, a Iu Mien red egg and yarn workshop, a Southeast Asian vendor marketplace, and more!
This program is co-presented by the Oakland Asian Cultural Center and the Center for Empowering Refugees and Immigrants (CERI). The event is free to attend, but registration is requested at the link below.
About the Khmer Amathak Dance Troupe
At the heart of CERI’s mission to preserve and celebrate cultural heritage is the Khmer Amathak Dance Troupe, a vibrant, youth-led ensemble dedicated to honoring and carrying forward the rich tradition of Cambodian dance. Guided by Moragaut Souet-Samonn, a passionate young leader deeply rooted in her heritage, the troupe embodies youth leadership, artistic expression, and community healing.
More than an art form, Khmer classical dance offers these young girls a pathway to healing and empowerment. Through the intricate, graceful movements passed down for generations, they build confidence, strengthen cultural pride, and pay tribute to the artist ancestors whose lives were lost during the Khmer Rouge genocide.
Performing regularly at community and cultural events, the dancers bring to life the elegance and beauty of the Apsaras, celestial dancers of the gods, sharing their heritage with grace, pride, and resilience.
Photo by Kenneth Wong
About CERI
The Center for Empowering Refugees and Immigrants (CERI) cultivates the healing, advocacy, and empowerment of refugee and immigrant communities affected by war, torture, genocide, and other life-altering traumas. They foster resilient communities that live with joy, determination, purpose and love, and weave together their intergenerational resilience into a holistic model of community mental health care. Learn more at cerieastbay.org.