Fighting stigma

IT’S very rarely one finds a boy doing ballet, but more often than not they’re almost guaranteed to amaze everyone. Such was the case with 12-year-old Miguel Franco-Green.

Miguel lives in Randvaal, Gauteng, and he has faced his fair share of problems that come with being a male ballet dancer, and hopes to help others in the same situation by showing them that there’s nothing wrong with doing ballet.

His mother, Chantelle Franco-Green said: “Miguel’s dream is to show young boys that it is okay, in a sports-dominated society, to be an artist, specifically a ballet dancer.

“Miguel has already faced the stigmas and prejudices young ballet boys face in South Africa and he has bravely continued to do what he loves and he would like to inspire other boys to do the same.”

This attitude isn’t coming from a simple, average dancer, however; Miguel has proven his skill in several national and international competitions.

In January, he attended the K-Arts

University in South Korea after being awarded a scholarship by one of the university’s professors.

That same month he participated in the South African International Ballet Competition, where he was the youngest male competitor and one of only three South African contestants up against young professionals from all over the world. He made it to the semi-finals and two of the judges offered him scholarships: one to the International Conservatory of Ballet in Portugal and the other to the Berlin State Ballet in Germany.

Last month he competed in the Youth America Grand Prix in New York City, where he was awarded yet another scholarship to the Bolshoi Academy Summer School in New York.

Miguel hopes to attend all these, and has started a crowdfunding campaign on ADDaBIT. R100 from every R1 000 donated will go to funding aspiring male ballet dancers.

Miguel said: “I feel good about how far

I’ve come, but I know I can work harder and go further. There is always room for improvement.”