Vaslav Nijinsky

Unlike previous biographers, who focused primarily on Nijinsky's early and most creative years, Ostwald gives equal weight to the 30 years this great artist spent in mental institutions. With access to previously untapped medical records and archival documents, the author (himself a psychiatrist) provides a clinical insight into Nijinsky's troubled life and relationships. This emphasis is timely: since the Joffrey Ballet's stunning 1987 revival of Nijinsky's Le Sacre du Printemps , there has been an explosion of interest in the mind behind its choreographic genius. The text is a bit disjointed at times, perhaps because it contains information gleaned from so many varied sources, but Ostwald provides a heartbreaking view into the darker aspects of Nijinsky. -- Library Journal.