It seems the Hong Kong Ballet will be short of one dancer for the next month. One of their corps de ballet (basically a group dancer, not a soloist) has asked for a month off. However, the sabbatical is not because of any injury, family problem or to gain additional training.

Instead, dancer Li Yiran (pictured) will be a contestant in this year's Miss Asia contest. The mainland-born dancer joined the company in 2005 and even won the most promising newcomer award from the Friends of Hong Kong Ballet last year.

However, the opportunities and lure of a beauty pageant were too much to resist compared to the tough discipline and low pay of a professional dance career. We wonder if she'll stop dancing if she wins or places in the top three in the contest.