Carlos Acosta’s debut novel tipped for success
Ballet star makes Waterstones annual list of most promising debut novels.
Cuban dancer Carlos Acosta has been dazzling audiences in Covent Garden as a Principal Guest Artist since 2003, this season performing in Swan Lake, Requiem and In the Night. However, he has been just as busy away from the stage writing his debut novel, Pig’s Foot.
The novel, which is set in 19th-century Cuba, has been named as one of The Waterstones Eleven, an annual list of the most promising fiction debuts that showcase potential best-sellers and literary award-winners.
Though Carlos’s autobiography, No Way Home, was published in 2007, Pig’s Foot is the dancer’s first foray into fiction.
“I have written an autobiography before,” he said in an interview with the Telegraph, “but it’s one thing writing about yourself and another to invent a whole world.
“I think my writing and ballet complement each other quite well. I’ve been doing ballet all my life and by the writing I can disappear, I can fly away somewhere and disconnect from my daily routine.”
Pig’s Foot, which was written in Spanish and translated by Frank Wynne, will be released on 30 October 2013.
Other recent publications with connections to The Royal Ballet include Darcey Bussell, which features photographs from the career of the former Royal Ballet Principal as well as personal comments. The book is currently being re-printed and will be available to buy from the Royal Opera House Shop in February. Also available is a limited edition book chronicling the process of creating last Season’s Metamorphosis: Titian 2012, a collaboration between The Royal Ballet and the National Gallery.
The Royal Ballet Yearbook 2012/13 is also available to buy from the Royal Opera House Shop.
