George Lee is an 88-year-old blackjack dealer who still works five days a week. He’s a familiar and beloved figure in the pit of the Four Queens Casino in downtown Las Vegas.

But none of those card players knows his astonishing story or his place in ballet history. A child dance prodigy who grew up poor in Shanghai. A refugee fleeing war.

And as a teenager in New York, George was selected by George Balanchine to dance in his original staging of The Nutcracker exactly 70 years ago. Performing the “Tea” divertissement, he was a sensation.

It’s a uniquely American story: an immigrant striving to prove himself. An Asian pioneer in ballet and on Broadway. A dancer whose artistry was recognized by no less than Balanchine and Gene Kelly, who cast him in the original production of Flower Drum Song. 

The film is a tale of talent and perseverance in the face of hardship, and a reminder of the extraordinary stories behind the nameless faces all around us.