Monkey Baa brings Li Cunxin’s autobiography Mao’s Last Dancerto the stage. First published as a children’s picture book, The Peasant Prince tells Li’s story from when, aged 10, he was plucked from rural China to attend a ballet academy, leaving behind everything and everyone he knew, including his beloved parents.

Years of training and his steely focus enable Li to transform into a giant of international dance, his courage and resilience central to this moving story.