Mao's Last Dancer.Mao's Last Dancer By Li Cunxin. New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , G.P. Putnam's Sons. 2004. 451 pages, illustrations, $25.95 It isn't news to dancers that Li Cunxin, who performed sixteen years with Houston Ballet and four with the Australian Ballet before retiring in 1999, knows the agony of hard work and rigorous discipline. But Li's poignant memoir, Mao's Last Dancer, surprises in other ways. If you want to know why China produces such wonderful dancers these days, this is a good place to start. The book traces Li's transformation from a naive "feather in a whirlwind" to life as a fully indoctrinated young Red Guardsman, then political defector, and finally, a passionate artist. Li was a bravura bra·vu·ra n. 1. Music a. Brilliant technique or style in performance. b. A piece or passage that emphasizes a performer's virtuosity. 2. A showy manner or display. adj. 1. technician who pushed himself relentlessly (he wore sandbags sandbags small sacks containing sand used to support an anesthetized animal in dorsal recumbency and prevent it from rolling sideways during anesthesia or surgery. to build up his legs). While he could eat up a role like the predatory main character in The Miraculous Mandarin (which Ben Stevenson staged for him), more often he projected a warm, innocent ardor ar·dor n. 1. Fiery intensity of feeling. See Synonyms at passion. 2. Strong enthusiasm or devotion; zeal: "The dazzling conquest of Mexico gave a new impulse to the ardor of discovery" as Prince Siegfried or Romeo. Born in a rural Chinese commune during Mao Zedong's Cultural Revolution, Li was the sixth of seven sons in a house sustained by love but little else. At 11, he was given an "iron rice bowl Origin of term "Iron rice bowl" (Simplified Chinese: 铁饭碗; Traditional Chinese: 鐵飯碗; Pinyin: "--a scholarship to the militaristic mil·i·ta·rism n. 1. Glorification of the ideals of a professional military class. 2. Predominance of the armed forces in the administration or policy of the state. 3. Beijing Dance Academy Beijing Dance Academy (Simplified Chinese: 北京舞蹈学院; Traditional Chinese: 北京舞蹈學院 that indentured him to the communist government. His own iron will and appetite for opportunity, though, propelled him further. "I was the one who had to fulfill my niang's, my dia's [parents'], and my six brothers' dreams," he writes. Through one hardship after another, Li's gentle humor keeps the book buoyant. With compelling simplicity, he also weaves ancient fables he learned as a child into his tale: life lessons about frogs who yearn for a broader perspective, crickets who save their families, and bow hunters who learn to keep promises. They make an engaging framework and offer evidence of China's strong cultural foundations. In spite of home's pull, the teenaged Li was "an ant in a hot wok." His 1981 defection--after a stint as an exchange student in Houston--makes a gripping chapter. Here, especially, Li's heart aches as much as his muscle--especially for the mother and father he thought lie might never see again. Mao's Last Dancer is uneven in places, but Li's tenacity is an inspiring lesson to any reader, dancer or not. It's the stuff of which great movies are made. Expect this one soon, and bring Kleenex. But read the book first.--MOLLY GLENTZER |
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