Mao's Last Dancer

Everybody has a story to tell. But Li Cunxin's Mao's Last Dancer is definitely among the ones that are worth reading.

Li's journey began as a poor peasant boy in Qingdao, a coastal city in Northeast China. In 1971, when he was 10 years old, he was chosen by Mao Zedong's wife, Madame Mao (Jiang Qing), to become a student of the Beijing Dance Academy. At the height of the Cultural Revolution, every art production in China, from dance to literature, was meant to be in praise of Mao's career as the nation's leader and of the achievements of the Communist revolution. Yet, eventually Li was able to learn that ballet itself as an art form can be beautiful beyond anybody's wildest imagining -- that any attempt to politicize it can only destroy its graceful and free sprit.

In 1978, Li was offered a six-week scholarship with the Houston Ballet. The supporter and trustee of the organization were Mr and Mrs George Bush, who later played an important part in the dramatic changes that took place in Li's life. In those six weeks Li's eyes were opened. What he saw in the United States enabled him to begin questioning the Communist system under which he was raised. He fought for, and was reluctantly granted by the Chinese government, another chance to go back to Houston in 1979. He defected in 1981, and his account of the negotiations between the Chinese and US governments over his fate and his being illegally detained by the Chinese embassy is one of the highlights of this book.

Li became a prominent ballet star not only in the United States but also in the world. However, he did not get to be united with his parents until 1984, when the Chinese government finally allowed them to visit the United States after George Bush's request. In one reviewer's words: "Li's account of the reunion is one of the many scenes in Mao's Last Dancer that are likely to leave readers misty-eyed."

Li married Australian ballet star Mary McKendry in 1987 and eventually moved to Australia. Although he retired in 1995 due to injuries, he continued to teach and dance with the Australian Ballet -- one of the world's best ballet groups. He is a stockbroker in Melbourne today.

Li began to work on this book after his retirement, and received friendly support from Australia's famous children's author and illustrator, Graeme Base. He wrote in English rather than Chinese "because I've read enough books in both languages to know how big a gap is caused by translation". His writing language is simple but touching. It is through his uncomplicated words that the most complicated human thoughts and feelings are explicitly expressed -- the emotional and psychological struggles between two homes, two cultures, and two political and social backgrounds.

Li Cunxin's Mao's Last Dancer was published by Penguin Books Australia in 2003. It should be noted that this book was among both "Australia's 100 Favorite Books" (surveyed by Angus & Robertson in 2003) and the top 100 of "Australia's Favorite Books" (surveyed by Australian Broadcasting Cooperation in 2004).

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Copyright: Christine Sun, Taiwan.com.au Portal, 2005. All rights are reserved.