Dancer (novel)
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 First hardcover edition (2003) | |
| Author | Colum McCann |
|---|---|
| Publisher | Weidenfeld |
Publication date | 2003 |
| Pages | 352 |
| ISBN | 9780805067927 |
Dancer is a novel based on the life of Rudolf Nureyev, written by Colum McCann and published in 2003.
Nureyev was a Russian ballet dancer who achieved fame with the Kirov Ballet before defecting to the West in 1961 and subsequently became "one of the most written-about dancers in history".[1] He died in 1992. McCann, born in Ireland, had previously written novels, short stories and newspaper reports while travelling and teaching in the United States and Japan; some of his work was set in Ireland and Northern Ireland. In 2001, already having "a growing reputation as an international writer",[2] he moved to Russia where he researched his novel based on Nureyev while teaching English.[2] A decade after the book's publication, McCann commented that he personally saw Nureyev as "a monster".[3]
Plot and structure
The book begins on the Eastern Front during World War II, with Nureyev performing for injured Soviet soldiers as a child. It covers his good fortune in gaining the chance to study ballet in his home country, his success there and then his life, work, loves and excesses as a celebrity after his defection to the West.[4]
The story is told partly through brief journal entries portrayed as written by Nureyev himself, and partly through narration by characters who knew him. The latter include his childhood dance instructor, his sister, his dance partner, and his maid. These each have their own perspectives and concerns, with sub-plots that add complexity and emotion to the story.[5] The book does not mention Nureyev's death from AIDS.[6]