Vanasay Khamphommala

Vanasay Khamphommala ວັນນະໄຊ ຄຳພົມມາລາ (1980, France) is a playwright, performer, writer and translator. After studying singing and music, she pursued a distinguished academic career (École normale supérieure, Harvard, Oxford) before training as an actress at the Classe libre du Cours Florent. Since 2018, together with her company Lapsus chevelü, she has created performances and shows such as L’Invocation à la Muse, Écho, Je viens chanter chez toi toute nue en échange d’un repas and ສຽງຂອງຍ່າ [La voix de ma grand-mère]. Her work explores European mythologies from a postcolonial and post-gender perspective.

Her residency project consists of a research-based performance centred on the mythological figure of Ganymede. The artist is interested in the transformations this myth has undergone over time and its central role in the European erotic and pederastic imagination. At Villa Medici, Vanasay Khamphommala is exploring how this figure resonates in contemporary queer communities, attempting to understand how this ancient tale continues to shape the bodies and identities of today.