While choreographing ballets is a logical next step for dancers, where will the next generation of ballet dancers come from? Especially with ballet programs needing more boys?
Essential Pittsburgh attended a class at the Ballet Academy of Pittsburgh in Mount Lebanon to meet David O’Matz a young dancer.
O’Matz, 15, is a Mount Lebanon High School student who has been dancing for three and a half years. One of the attractions of ballet, for him, is rooted in the lines which a ballet dancer creates with his or her body.
“These lines and how they relate to the music coveys really powerful emotions,” O’Matz said.
Chris O’Matz, David’s mother, said he first became interested in ballet after reading a Time magazine article about boys in ballet. “That’s what I attribute his interest (in ballet) to,” she recalled.
“Ballet is so interesting how you’re not doing this for yourself and you’re not doing this to beat a team, but you’re doing it for the beauty of others,” David said, when recalling his interest in ballet.
David’s future plans include attending the School of American Ballet this summer this summer. While the ballet world is very competitive, David hopes to become a professional dancer.
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