The story of Li Cunxin, plucked aged 11 from a poor, remote Chinese village to train as a ballet dancer at the madam Mao's Beijing Academy.

The true story of how a Chinese peasant boy became a leading ballet dancer in the West. Li Cunxin grew up in a remote commune village in China. His life was one of daily hardships - there was never enough food to for Li and his six brothers and his only entertainment, especially during the harsh winters, was to be told fables by his father. Li's life seemed mapped out; he was 'the frog at the bottom of the well who would have to be content to see just a small patch of sky. Then, in 1971, at the age of eleven, Li was chosen to train as a ballet dancer at Madam Mao's Beijing Dance Acadamy. Li's life and fortune took a new path...