18 LIFE CHINA DAILY WEDNESDAY MARCH 7, 2007

New spin The rise on ballet star’s grief and rise By Mu Qian

“My madness is my love for mankind,” wrote Vaslav Nijinsky in his diary, inspiring Hong Kong City Contempo- of Yu Nan rary Dance Company’s Xing Liang to create a work on the She can speak three legendary Russian dancer and choreographer. languages fl uently and has With his extraordinary technique and innovative been lauded at international choreography, Nijinsky mesmerized, and shocked, fi lm festivals but China’s latest the ballet world of the early 1900s. His rise was screen queen is just warming meteoric, but after 10 years Chen Nan of unprecedented fame, he up. reports began a descent into madness. He was only 29 then. he lights were already there. The Nijinsky remained mentally cameras were ready. And action unstable for the last 30 years of started as soon as she stepped on his life, never dancing again. the red carpet at the 57th Berlin Based on The Diaries of Film Festival. Nijinsky, Xing refl ects on his TYu Nan responded with her confi dent inner self, exploring the mind smile. Her full lips and deep-set eyes, of a genius on the outer edge of journalists said, were more captivating in reason. real life than on screen. Choreographed by Xing, and Yu was at the festival for her fi lm Tuya’s performed by an all-male cast Marriage, in which she plays a Mongolian from the City Contemporary herdswoman. That role means her full face Dance Company, including Xing can’t be seen for a good part of the fi lm. But himself, Nijinsky was one of even her head-to-toe dress hasn’t been able Hong Kong’s best-received dance to hide her beauty, prompting Hollywood works last year. The troupe will reporter-critic Kirk Honeycutt to write: now perform at the Haidian “Yu Nan’s beauty radiates in every scene Theater in Beijing on March 10. despite being bundled in thick coats with “Many works have been a red scarf obscuring half her head. She based on Nijinsky, but Xing just has one of those amazing faces that has created a unique piece contains multitudes.” that does not try to tell a story. That face radiated even more amazingly Instead, it probes the various when she took the stage with director Wang European audiences were im- levels of a genius’s mental Quan’an to accept the Golden Bear Prize for pressed by Yu Nan’s turn in the world,” says Willy Tsao, artistic the fi lm at the Berlin festival. Golden Bear Prize-winning fi lm director of City Contemporary Tuya’s Marriage. Dance Company. u has been Wang’s regular actress “Xing is not describing Ni- for eight years, and plays the jinsky from outside, but feeling Ycharacter of Tuya, a reserved but him from inside.” determined woman in the Inner Mongolia was my leading lady.” something she could use to her advan- the Best Actress Award at Deauville Film In Xing’s Nijinsky, eight danc- Autonomous Region. She is married to a Yu, too, poured out her emotions: I feel tage in Hollywood and European fi lms. Festival. The recognition brought her to ers represent different images physically challenged man. He decides proud that our fi lm has won the highest She just fi nished her fi rst Hollywood fi lm French fi lm producers’ attention, one of of Nijinsky at times, and at on a divorce so that his still young and honor at the festival, and I’m happy to see Diamond Dog, which too was shot in the who cast her in Rage (2003). others they become one. pretty wife can marry another man who the audience here can see the inherent Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Yu But the young actress seemed to be un- Born in Beijing, Xing is at could take care of her and the children. beauty of Tuya.” plays the female lead, which she said was prepared. “I didn’t know a scout for Rage present the resident artist Tuya agrees, but has one condition for one of her favorite roles. was there,” she recalled. “He asked me if of City Contemporary Dance the new groom: Her fi rst husband has to uropean audiences are more famil- Yu said the character “looks confi dent I had a minute. Then he shot me from dif- Company. He has won many be part of the package. iar with Yu because she has acted in and strong, but actually she is vulnerable ferent angles with a video camera. Later, international awards such Yu said it was the most diffi cult fi lm Eseveral well-received offbeat fi lms inside. The fi rst time I read the script, I I was asked to take an audition. That took as the Gold Award in the she had acted in. The shooting conditions screened on the continent and appeared about a week, and things were settled after Male Solo Class of the Paris were tough, with freezing temperatures at many international film festivals. I came back to Beijing.” International Dance Competi- and an arid, dusty environment. Also, Many international critics see her as the I realized I was becoming tion, the Hong Kong Alliance she had to learn to ride a horse and next Gong Li, even though back home she Tuya in real life while we efore the shooting for Rage started, Dance Awards and the Silver camel, as well as herd sheep. “I realized has just started to be recognized by the Yu was made to attend classes at an Award in the Modern Dance I was becoming Tuya in real life while media and public. That may be surprising were shooting. Bintensive French language school for Section at the Italian Interna- Tuya (Yu Nan) we were shooting.” because she has already won a Golden YU NAN three months. “I learnt quickly. So when tional Dance Competition. is a bride that Describing her performance, Wang said: Rooster Film Festival (2003) Best Actress we started shooting, it wasn’t diffi cult for comes with “I can see her passion for acting and the Award, the country’s top acting honor. Her Actress me to communicate with the others on conditions for progress she has made. Years have passed role in The Story of Er Mei (Jing Zhe), too, the set.” The process of fi lmmaking in her second since we worked together the fi rst time. won her the Best Actress Award at the 2004 France taught her a lot about acting and husband (Sen But I can still see a girl, confi dent and Paris Film Festival. thought of Isabella that Gong Li played sets in foreign fi lms. The possibility of not Ge) in Tuya’s beautiful, arguing with her professor in “I’m very happy to be among the in Miami Vice. The two roles have a lot being selected for the role put her under Marriage. the classroom. That was the fi rst time I favorites who could have won the best in common. I like to take up challenging tremendous pressure, “especially because File photos saw Yu, and decided immediately that she actress award in Berlin. Only Gong Li and roles, both in commercial and offbeat I was to act opposite Samuel Le Bihan, who Hong Kong actress Maggie fi lms.” is a big star”. Cheung have won such Her rising stature made her sign a Yu hardly had any problems with her top prizes. And I have no contract with CAA, the biggest entertain- English in the fi lm. She owes her gift of regrets even after failing to ment agency in the United States, last languages, she said, to her grandparents get the Silver Bear Prize,” year. She is preparing to start shooting who were among the fi rst group of Chinese she said. for a thriller later this month, and will students to study abroad. Her grandfather Chinese actresses such work with director Wang again in the can speak seven languages. as Gong Li and US-based middle of the year. Yu has just fi nished Wang Xiaoshuai’s Joan Chen are her idols, Yu Born in Dalian in 1978, Yu started acting Left and Right and Taiwan woman direc- said. “Gong Li is not a vase- at the age of 4, playing role of a little girl tor Lee Yun-chan’s second movie, My DNA like actress in Hollywood. with a handkerchief tied to her dress. Says I Love You. Even though her English is Later, instead of following her family’s In DNA, she plays an introvert science re- not very good, many direc- advice to study foreign languages and searcher, Ma Ling. Ma is genetically prone tors would choose her for get a university degree, Yu enrolled at the to putting on weight. She takes medicines to their films because she Beijing Film Academy in 1995. control her weight, and despite being slim is Gong Li, talented and “I was not a typical good student then be- and beautiful, she is worried about becoming a veteran. Her acting is cause I often skipped classes,” she said. “If fat. This thought tortures her till she meets excellent and I want to be given a chance, I would choose to watch fi lms the person she loves. Unlike Tuya, who Choreographed by Xing Liang, as good as her.” at home, instead of sitting in the classroom.” often vents her passion, Ma seldom speaks and performed by an all-male Yu doesn’t have Gong’s So she soaked herself in French and Italian her thoughts. cast, Nijinsky follows the language handicap. In movies, her favorites then. Playing two diametrically opposite dancer’s descent into mad- fact, she speaks English Her fi rst fi lm after graduating in 1999 characters may be a challenge, but Yu has ness. File photo and French fluently, was Lunar Eclipse (2001), which won her the power to excel in whatever she does. WHAT’SNEW Artistic alliance: Tokyo Tourism will hit bookstores this month. colors of the Olympic rings and a Peace Tianqiao Theater on March 7 and 8, as a The biggest of its kind, the encyclopedia Dove balloon. tribute to the ongoing 5th Session of the to host Party is the most comprehensive and accurate The cultural extravaganza, jointly 10th National Committee of CPPCC. picture album to date on the trade and sponsored by the Beijing and Los Angeles “We hope to bring the audience back to To mark the 35th anniversary of the economy, investment environment, tourist municipal governments, featured a colorful the time of the Song Dynasty through normalization of Sino-Japanese diplomatic destinations, and local customs of China’s display of fl oats, dancers and traditional this work,” said the musical’s director relations, a grand opening ceremony of provinces, municipalities and autonomous Chinese events. Huang Lei. Sino-Japan Cultural and Gymnastic Com- regions. munication Year will be held in Tokyo next Featuring 2,100 pictures and a 460,000- month. word text, all the album’s 11 volumes are Musical gives new color Scholar-artist bags Both sides have established special available both in Chinese and English. to ancient painting US award committees to organize the activities for the year. With Chinese Minister of Culture Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) paint- Chinese scholar Zhang Xuedong Sun Jiazheng as the president, the Chinese Chinese cavalcade er Zhang Zeduan’s work Along the River was awarded the George Kozmetsky organization committee will cooperate with hits Hollywood During Qingming Festival is well-known for Award presented by the Society for its Japanese counterpart on nearly 100 its panoramic scene that represents a broad Design and Process Science in the United projects in art, sport, travel, media, fi lm and More than 500 Beijing performers took cross-section of society — from rural dwell- States for his research into Chinese tradi- trans-diciplinary innovation.” education. part in a giant goodwill parade in Holly- ers to urbanites. tional culture. Zhang has spent more than 20 years wood on Saturday to mark the spirit of har- Now the work has been adapted into a In his creative work Yi-picture Thinking, studying Chinese philosophy. mony of the Chinese New Year celebrations. musical of the same title by the Kaifeng Zhang used 108 images, which look like How many words do The parade started at the historic Grau- Song and Dance Ensemble of Central Chi- Chinese calligraphy, to reveal the essence of China Daily 2,100 pictures paint? man’s Chinese Theater and proceeded down na’s Henan Province. Chinese traditional culture and the har- Hollywood Boulevard. It lasted about two The large-scale production involves a mony between man and nature. To comment or alert us to a story, The China Encyclopedia Picture Album hours and culminated with the release of cast of 140 people and blends Peking Opera The award citation says “It is granted to e-mail [email protected] Concerning Economy, Trade, Investment, and giant dragon balloons in the symbolic fi ve with acrobatics. It will be put on in Beijing’s those who have made great contributions to