An energetic yet disjointed coming-of-age story; readers seeking insight into the world of ballet should look elsewhere.
A memoir from the principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre.
After realizing his childhood dream to become a professional dancer, Whiteside (b. 1984) narrates his journey. In 1996, his dance teachers brought 12-year-old James to see ABT's spring gala show at Lincoln Center, and he was mesmerized by "the virtuosity, the music, the costumes, the drama, THE BUTTS!" The author chronicles his swift rise through the ranks at ABT's Summer Intensive program, the Virginia School of the Arts, the Boston Ballet, and ABT. Though Whiteside thought that he “was doing something super gay,” ballet proved to be "just another heteronormative endeavor.” Because he “wasn't able to express my true self in my art,” he created his own gay roles, acting out his alter egos JbDubs, a pop musician, and Ühu Betch, “the drag queen with a flair for nonsense.” The author, who clearly worked tirelessly to reach his goal, is an elite athlete and an expressive actor, blessed with both musicality and physical grace. However, readers seeking details about his artistic training or technique are out of luck. There are few backstage stories or descriptions of favorite partners, roles, or performances. Whiteside does delve deeply and often movingly into his mother's tragic life trajectory. He devotes less-engaging chapters to his dating history and his beloved pets, and a missed flight and overnight stay at the "Casablanca Roach Motel" serve as the basis for a comic script for a Pussycat Dolls–themed musical (40 pages, included in full). Whiteside tells his story candidly and with occasional humor, delivering a requiem for his youth (“The end has already come—the end of wild youth. Any wildness now is just bad choices”), but he fails to provide any exciting scenes about opening nights or standout performances. To borrow the title of the last chapter, "Why Not?"
An energetic yet disjointed coming-of-age story; readers seeking insight into the world of ballet should look elsewhere.Pub Date: Aug. 17, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-593-29783-4
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2021
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.
A former New York City dancer reflects on her zesty heyday in the 1970s.
Discovered on a Manhattan street in 2020 and introduced on Stanton’s Humans of New York Instagram page, Johnson, then 76, shares her dynamic history as a “fiercely independent” Black burlesque dancer who used the stage name Tanqueray and became a celebrated fixture in midtown adult theaters. “I was the only black girl making white girl money,” she boasts, telling a vibrant story about sex and struggle in a bygone era. Frank and unapologetic, Johnson vividly captures aspects of her former life as a stage seductress shimmying to blues tracks during 18-minute sets or sewing lingerie for plus-sized dancers. Though her work was far from the Broadway shows she dreamed about, it eventually became all about the nightly hustle to simply survive. Her anecdotes are humorous, heartfelt, and supremely captivating, recounted with the passion of a true survivor and the acerbic wit of a weathered, street-wise New Yorker. She shares stories of growing up in an abusive household in Albany in the 1940s, a teenage pregnancy, and prison time for robbery as nonchalantly as she recalls selling rhinestone G-strings to prostitutes to make them sparkle in the headlights of passing cars. Complemented by an array of revealing personal photographs, the narrative alternates between heartfelt nostalgia about the seedier side of Manhattan’s go-go scene and funny quips about her unconventional stage performances. Encounters with a variety of hardworking dancers, drag queens, and pimps, plus an account of the complexities of a first love with a drug-addled hustler, fill out the memoir with personality and candor. With a narrative assist from Stanton, the result is a consistently titillating and often moving story of human struggle as well as an insider glimpse into the days when Times Square was considered the Big Apple’s gloriously unpolished underbelly. The book also includes Yee’s lush watercolor illustrations.
A blissfully vicarious, heartfelt glimpse into the life of a Manhattan burlesque dancer.Pub Date: July 12, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-250-27827-2
Page Count: 192
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2022
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.
Documenting perilous times.
In his most recent behind-the-scenes account of political power and how it is wielded, Woodward synthesizes several narrative strands, from the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection and Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel to the 2024 presidential campaign. Woodward’s clear, gripping storytelling benefits from his legendary access to prominent figures and a structure of propulsive chapters. The run-up to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is tense (if occasionally repetitive), as a cast of geopolitical insiders try to divine Vladimir Putin’s intent: “Doubt among allies, the public and among Ukrainians meant valuable time and space for Putin to maneuver.” Against this backdrop, U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham implores Donald Trump to run again, notwithstanding the former president’s denial of his 2020 defeat. This provides unwelcome distraction for President Biden, portrayed as a thoughtful, compassionate lifetime politico who could not outrace time, as demonstrated in the June 2024 debate. Throughout, Trump’s prevarications and his supporters’ cynicism provide an unsettling counterpoint to warnings provided by everyone from former Joint Chief of Staff Mark Milley to Vice President Kamala Harris, who calls a second Trump term a likely “death knell for American democracy.” The author’s ambitious scope shows him at the top of his capabilities. He concludes with these unsettling words: “Based on my reporting, Trump’s language and conduct has at times presented risks to national security—both during his presidency and afterward.”
An engrossing and ominous chronicle, told by a master of the form.Pub Date: Oct. 15, 2024
ISBN: 9781668052273
Page Count: 448
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Oct. 15, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2024
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