By Dawn McNutt
Special to THE DAILY

There are certain books in your life that stay with you long after reading the last page. Not because they were life- changing experiences or provided you with some newfound wisdom, but because the story (or the person in this example) caused you to re-evaluate some of your previously held beliefs and ideas.

“Nureyev” held me captive from the opening paragraph and wouldn’t release me even after 782 pages. I had to go back and think why I was so spellbound by this man.

I am not a huge fan of biographies, nor am I enthralled by “selfish geniuses” who live their lives by a completely different code of ethics than the average person. I am not starstruck by celebrities, and honestly don’t care what they are doing with their lives unless it’s something along the humanitarian route.

Why, then, were I and countless others mesmerized by this Russian dancer who took the ballet world by storm? If I had to choose one word, it would be “passion.” He simply put his heart and soul into every performance and expected nothing less than perfection from himself and everyone around him.

Such demands don’t make for an easy road traveled, but they do make for an interesting one.

Rudolf Nureyev was not a kind or considerate man. He wasn’t particularly gracious or even appealing in many areas of his life. His contemptible behavior was so uproarious at times, it’s a wonder he had any friends at all. He threw dinner plates at people and blew his nose on hotel towels. He deliberately dropped ballerinas and thought nothing of becoming involved with his teacher’s wife.

He lived his life by his own unique rules and made no apologies or concessions. Love him or hate him, it mattered very little. What he cared most about was ballet. It was his one true love and was what sustained him during the constant emotional turmoil that prevailed throughout his life.

Born into a poor family in the Soviet Union in 1938, Rudolph attended his first ballet at 7 and was “in love” from that moment on. He thought of little else except ballet class and practice.

At 17 he was accepted at Kirov Ballet’s Vaganova Academy in Leningrad and soon began studying with the legendary Alexander Pushkin, who not only transformed young Rudolph, but was the main catalyst in his later acceptance to join the Kirov when he turned 20.

It was during this time that Nureyev began his somewhat questionable life in terms of his own sexuality. The boundaries of marriage held no interest for him and he pursued everyone and everything with equal passion.

It was also at this time that he defected from the Soviet Union. During a spring tour in Paris in 1961, in which several KGB agents followed his every move, he escaped and was granted asylum.

He went on to Denmark in search of a teacher he had heard about and stayed there for several years until he had perfected his technique. He then joined England’s Royal Ballet, galvanizing them in the process, and leading them to sellout success.

For the better part of a decade, Nureyev and lead ballerina Margot Fonteyn held audiences spellbound on and off the stage. They would be summoned back for 25 curtain calls and made ballet more popular than ever, even starring in the 1965 film “Le Corsaire.”

Nureyev’s dancing raised the bar for the male ballet dancer in the West. However, he was constantly consumed by his own narcissism. He had to control everything from the choreography to rehearsals, and above all, had to be the star of every show.

He made enemies of almost everyone he met, but was tolerated because of his talent. The Vienna Opera Ballet, the Berlin Opera Ballet, the Royal Swedish Ballet, the National Ballet of Canada and the Australian Ballet are a few of the companies he went on to perform for.

In exchange for his talents, these companies had to bench their young leading men and perform Nureyev’s version of the classics, as well as accept that his notorious temper tantrums were part of the package. He would berate everyone in the company and dance the lead in every show.

Because of this, his body was becoming unstable and he could barely walk at times.

Nureyev was lonely and bitter and consoled himself with the luxuries of a wealthy but unfulfilled man: a mansion in London, a villa in the South of France, a 415-acre farm in Virginia and an antique-filled apartment in Paris.

He even managed to purchase an apartment in the legendary Dakota building in New York City, home to many a celebrity in search of all the comforts money can buy.

In 1983, he became artistic director of the Paris Opera Ballet, the oldest and most prestigious ballet company in the world. He is credited for giving the company a much needed shake-up as well as an everlasting bitterness that is still discussed.

Many of the teachers were fired, and twice the company threatened to strike, but Nureyev showed little concern. When he was replaced in 1990, he was astounded, as well as gravely ill.

In 1984 he had been confirmed HIV-positive, but refused to allow this to interfere with his dancing. At one point, he was performing with a catheter inside his costume. He simply could not comprehend that he was dying. He refused medication, and in January 1993 he succumbed to the ravages of the disease in his hospital room.

10 years to write

Julie Kavanagh spent 10 years researching and writing this massive biography, which spans Nureyev’s entire life. Many chapters are devoted to his controversial personal life and she could have spared some of the details, but the story itself is both compelling and highly readable, whether you are a fan of ballet or not.

I had the pleasure of seeing Nureyev dance in New York City when I was a child. I had never sat so quietly in my life. I remember thinking there was no one else in the world who could dance like him, and I was right.

Nureyev was a force to reckon with on and off the stage, but his contributions to the world of ballet will be remembered forever.

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