Full of insight and wit, Candy Girl is the seductive memoir of a young woman who dared to bare it all as a stripper Diablo Cody was twenty-four years old when she decided there had to be more to life than typing copy at an ad agency. On a whim, she signed up for amateur night at Minneapolis’s seedy Skyway Lounge. She didn’t win a prize that night, but she discovered that stripping delivered a rush she had never experienced before, and too many experiences to not write about it. While she didn’t fit the ordinary profile of a stripper—she had a supportive boyfriend, was equal parts brainpower and beauty, was from a good family, and was out to do a little soul searching—she soon immersed herself in this enticing life full-time. In Candy Girl, Diablo tells the captivating fish-out-of-water story of her yearlong walk on the wild side. In witty prose she gives readers a behind-the-scenes look at this industry through a writer’s keen eye, from quiet gentlemen’s clubs to multi-level sex palaces, with all of her wry observations along the way. Some of her discoveries? Blondes make more money; it takes a pro to master The Pole; and while the girls wield much sway over the customers, in reality the power is totally out of their hands. Eventually, the lucrative skin trade began to drain Diablo emotionally, but her foray into this world had a profound and, surprisingly, positive effect. Funny and fascinating, Candy Girl is a seductive treat. "Diablo Cody is to stripping what Chuck Klosterman is to pop culture and Sarah Vowell is to American History--an off-kilter visionary cynical enough to trust and talented enough to blister all that her mighty pen touches. Candy Girl is fiendishly funny, muscle car fast, and frighteningly--and I do mean frighteningly--accurate. Lock up your daughters and get your lighters in the air, for Candy Girl proves Ms. Diablo to be a writer of rock star calibre." --Lily Burana, author, "STRIP CITY: A Stripper's Farewell Journey Across America"

As the spirited step dancer and international star of Riverdance, Michael Flatley shattered records, silenced doubters, revolutionized an ancient dance form, and brought joy to millions of people worldwide. After finding his calling at the age of eleven, when he was "dragged by the ears" to dance school, Michael went on to become the first American to win the World Irish Dancing Championship. In this no-holds-barred autobiography, Michael explains what really happened backstage at Riverdance -- and why and how he launched one of the greatest show business success stories of all time, Lord of the Dance. He also discusses his life as a dancer -- the hours of rigorous training and the drama behind his controversial rise to stardom. Filled with commentary from family, friends, colleagues, and celebrities and brimming with Michael's Irish charm and good humor, this book is the very personal story of a man who has lived life to the fullest according to his own credo: Nothing is impossible.

An extraordinary memoir of a peasant boy raised in rural Maoist China who was plucked from his village to study ballet and went on to become one of the greatest dancers of his generation. In 1961, three years of Mao's Great Leap Forward-along with three years of poor harvests-had left a rural China suffering terribly from disease and deprivation. Li Cunxin, his parents' sixth son, lived in a small house with twenty of his relatives and, along with the rest of his family, subsisted for years on the verge of starvation. But when he was eleven years old, Madame Mao decided to revive the Peking Dance Academy, and sent her men into the countryside searching for children to attend. Chosen on the basis of his physique alone, Li Cunxin was taken from his family and sent to the city for rigorous training. What follows is the story of how a small, terrified, lonely boy became one of the greatest ballet dancers in the world. One part Falling Leaves, one part Billy Eliot, Mao's Last Dancer is an unforgettable memoir of hope and courage.

With Steps in Time dancer, choreographer, and movie star Fred Astaire (1899-1987) discusses the milestones of his professional life: his childhood in the vaudeville circuits; the musical comedies starring himself and sister Adele in New York and London; his movie successes; the founding of the Fred Astaire Dance Studios; and his triumphs on TV. He pays special attention to his celebrated partnership with Ginger Rogers, with whom he produced such classics as Top Hat , Flying Down to Rio , The Story of Vernon and Irene Castle , and countless others.

Allegra Kent joined the New York City Ballet at the age of fifteen and, only two years later, inspired Balanchine's unforgettable The Unanswered Question. Beautiful, sensuous, and mysterious, she quickly became an essential Balanchine dancer-and the story of her personal life is as dramatic as they story of her rise to fame. Her account of a bizarre childhood, a magnificent if curious dance career, a charged, complicated domestic life with photographer Bert Stern, and a never-ending struggle with emotional, physical, and financial pressures is fascinating-as are her portraits of the other great dance figures who punctuated her life, from Balanchine to Baryshnikov.

Suzanne Farrell, world-renowned ballerina, was one of George Balanchine's most celebrated muses and remains a legendary figure in the ballet world. This memoir, first published in 1990 and reissued with a new preface by the author, recounts Farrell's transformation from a young girl in Ohio dreaming of greatness to the realization of that dream on stages all over the world. Central to this transformation was her relationship with George Balanchine, who invited her to join the New York City Ballet in the fall of 1961 and was in turn inspired by her unique combination of musical, physical, and dramatic gifts. He created masterpieces for her in which the limits of ballet technique were expanded to a degree not seen before. By the time she retired from the stage in 1989, Farrell had achieved a career that is without precedent in the history of ballet. One third of her repertory of more than 100 ballets were composed expressly for her by such notable choreographers as Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and Maurice Bejart. Farrell recalls professional and personal attachments and their attendant controversies with a down-to-earth frankness and common sense that complements the glories and mysteries of her artistic achievement.

The very first biography and cultural study of Japanese dancer Tatsumi Hijikata, who invented the revolutionary performance art ‘Ankoku Butoh’ – now celebrated worldwide as one of the most innovative and haunting contemporary art forms. A university level text, illustrated throughout, of vital interest to all readers engaged with performance art and dance.