Male ballet dancers seek career opportunities locally to become breadwinners and break stereotypes

KUALA LUMPUR, June 15 — Boys have always been a minority in ballet but 10-year-old Chow Min Han is already a rising star in the female-dominated industry.

Watching his friends perform ballet enticed Chow to the dance floor three years ago.

“When my friends danced, they were very graceful and strong.

“Ballet needs a lot of strong people. There are not many male dancers in ballet and I want to change that,” said Chow, who aspires to be a ballet instructor.

Chow Min Han, 10, is already a rising star in the female-dominated ballet industry. — Picture by Hari Anggara

Chow, the second of four siblings, was the first in his family to join ballet and his two younger sisters have followed in his footsteps.

However, the absence of a clear career path for professional ballet dancers in Malaysia often hinders boys like Chow from pursuing their dream.

Asia Ballet Academy president and artistic director Ivy Chung said Malaysia currently has no professional ballet dance company despite numerous schools providing professional classes and training.

“So, the boys often have limited job opportunities after their training.

“At best, they can only treat ballet as a hobby by taking up independent projects rather than committing to it full-time.

“Those who remain passionate are compelled to move abroad to pursue their dreams.

“The society expects men to be breadwinners and put food on the table for the family.

“Without a clear career path, how do we convince them to take up ballet full-time?” she told Malay Mail, when met recently.

Chung said Malaysia lacks career opportunities for ballet, partly because ballet productions are very costly and some segments still perceive it as a foreign art.

Still, ballet has gained a strong footing in many South-east Asian countries such as in Singapore as well as the Philippines, which has three leading ballet dance companies.

Although many international ballet companies are presenting their productions in Malaysia, Chung said their collaborations with local ballet schools rarely extend beyond the performances.

Echoing similar sentiments, Malaysian dancers working with international ballet companies like Dominic Lor An Zhen and Julian Gan Wen Sheng are rooting for a more vibrant ballet scene at home.

Both Lor and Gan grew up in ballet shoes as their mothers were ballet teachers and later graduated from the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington DC, United States.

Lor and Gan returned as guest dancers for Le Corsaire: A Pirate’s Tale, presented by Asia Ballet Academy recently at Petaling Jaya Performing Arts Centre.

Le Corsaire follows the story of Conrad (Lor) rescuing his beloved lover Medora from the clutches of slavery despite the betrayal of his close friend Birbanto (Gan).

“Ballet is still a niche content in Malaysia but people are more receptive to watching male ballet dancers now.

“The dance scene itself is getting larger in Malaysia with more adult classes, workshops and competitions,” Gan said.

Meanwhile, Lor noted that more males are participating in ballet now compared to when he and Gan took the dance floor some 10 years ago.

“When we started, Gan and I did not have many role models to look up to in Malaysia, except for one or two male ballet dancers back in the 1970s.

“Fortunately, more boys are coming to the dance stage now,” Lor said.

(From left) Asia Ballet Academy manager and head of marketing and communications Shizreen Saleh, president and artistic director Ivy Chung, associate managing editor and senior ballet teacher Chong Chi Yaan. — Picture by Hari Anggara

Through Asia Ballet Academy, Chung is striving to establish a professional ballet company for local talents and ultimately make Malaysia a regional hub for ballet and dance.

The academy, she said, is also working for ballet to be recognised as a credited co-curricular activity in schools to integrate ballet into the national education and cultural fabric of Malaysia.

And, she hopes to make it in time for budding ballet stars like Chow to build their dream careers here at home.