Nigerian boy’s barefoot ballet performance went viral. Now a New York dance school has offered him a scholarship

Many may be familiar with the saying, “Where there’s a will there’s a way”. Now get ready to witness an 11-year-old Nigerian boy named Anthony Mmesoma Madu exemplify this phrase. A video of Madu performing ballet barefoot in the rain went viral all over the Internet. Now, thanks to his viral video, Madu has received a full scholarship from a dance school in New York.

Madu’s clip was shared on Leap of Dance Academy’s official Instagram page back in June. Madu is one of the 12 students at the Academy currently, reports the BBC.

The recording shows Madu standing in the rain. The boy twists and turns as he performs an entire ballet routine without any music. To say that netizens were left impressed by his performance would be an understatement.

Check it out below:

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FACTS ABOUT OUR PROGRAM. Behind those fanciful in class beauty and costumes are lots and lots of backstage hard work. With very little or no resources our kids are training to be the best they can. This is not to bring down anyone but to show their high level of dedication and committments to our program. Who wouldn't be proud of them? What teacher wouldn't pray for students who shows/comes to class with so much desire to learn? Kids who are ready to dance with or without conditions. Imagine what more we could achieve if we have more?? DMs for more information. #leapofdanceacademy #covid19 #donation #vocational #nigerianballetschool #travelingtutusincnigeria #danceacademy #danceeducation #weloveyou #growth #weloveourpartners #yeswecan #dancing #learning

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Since being shared on the photo and video sharing application, the post has captured netizens’ hearts. It currently has over 3.2 lakh views and many encouraging comments.

Academy Award winner, American actor Viola Davis also shared the video on her Twitter account.

Here is what Instagram users had to say about the boy’s performance. One person said, “So smooth”. Another individual wrote, “Wonderful”. Many also left positive emojis under the post.

Among those watching was Cynthia Harvey, the artistic director of the ABT Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School of Dance in New York, reports Cincinnati.com.

Harvey has since extended a full scholarship offer to Madu to attend a virtual summer dance workshop for three weeks conducted by ABT for young artists like himself. And according to a post shared on the dance academy’s Instagram page, he has already started classes.

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Anthony you are a dancing inspiration to us all! ✨ Bless social media for connecting us to you! After seeing this video, Cynthia Harvey (@cyn_dicate) of @abtschool contacted Anthony’s school in Nigeria, @leapofdanceacademy and offered Anthony a full-scholarship to ABT’s virtual Young Dancer Summer Workshop. As well as covering the costs of WiFi! Anthony started class yesterday! Read the full article at the link in bio! ?

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What are your thoughts on Madu’s dance performance?

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