Jin Xing: from Chinese army officer to dancing TV stardom
China's most fascinating celebrity is probably the only contemporary dancer also capable of blowing up a bridge – she also used to be a man
Tania Branigan
guardian.co.uk, Monday 10 September 2012 16.00 EDT
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/sep/10/jin-xing-chinese-army-dancing-tvInterviewing Jin Xing is tiring enough: her emphatic but accelerated delivery fills pages of a notebook within minutes. Being her must be truly exhausting. Her starring role in a Shanghai play has come to a close, but there's a new contemporary dance production; a television talkshow to host; guest spots as a judge on a TV talent contest; and three young children to mother.
That's just this autumn. She has crammed much more into her life, partly thanks to the fearsome military discipline forged as a colonel in the People's Liberation Army performance troupe. She may be the only acclaimed contemporary dancer capable of blowing up a bridge. Though she is just 43, Jin's life has spanned numerous roles, two continents and, most famously, both genders.
"All over the world, it's very tough for people to accept it," she says of her gender reassignment surgery.