Mao's Last Dancer and WICKED in Sydney!

Mao's Last Dancer

I went to a private screening of the movie Mao's Last Dancer. It's based on the autobiography by Li Cun Xin.

The story tells of a boy from a poor village in communist China who gets chosen to train ballet for several years at the Beijing Dance Academy.

Li Cun Xin's hard work and determination payed off when he was allowed to be one of the first two exchange students under Mao's regime to train in the US. In the US he falls in love with an American ballerina played by Amanda Schull who was the lead in another dance movie called "Centerstage".  Li Cun Xin applies for an extension of his stay in the US but the Chinese government refuses and Li Cun Xin gets locked up at the Chinese Consulate.

After a political stand-off between Washington and China he was released as a free man.

He is no longer allowed to enter China and doesn't see his family for several years. One of the most touching moments was when his parents showed up at a performance and they get reunited. Joan Chen was amazing as Li Cun Xin's mother and her acting was one of the many highlights of the movie.

Li Cun Xin was a principal dancer with the Houston Ballet and performed all around the world. He currently lives in Melbourne and is married to an Australian ballerina and has two children.

Today I watched the musical WICKED for the first time and I thought it was absolutely wicked indeed!!!!

We had the 1st understudy who played Elphaba and I thought she was really good! I love all the songs, the set design and the costumes. It's definitely a show I would want to watch again!

This is my rendition of one of my favorite songs in the show, "Defying Gravity"

The pictures below are only a few of the places you should visit in Sydney!

The Harbour Bridge

The view from the Harbour Bridge           

Enjoying the Guylian Cafe                            The fish market

Watching a cycling tournament                    Bondi Beach                 

The annual Sydney Marathon

@ Featherdale Wildlife park                         Isn't this a cool chicken?!!!

I've been to Tarronga Zoo before, but visitors were not allowed to come too close to the koala's. At Featherdale people could cuddle up with these cute animals!

Balmoral beach

The Three Sisters

The Blue Mountains

I'm all packed and ready to go to HK tomorrow to start rehearsing for the Musical Moments concert on the 4th of October!