Anthony Madu, a Nigerian, went from pirouetting on the dusty streets of Lagos to performing in the hallways of a prominent British dance school in 2020 after releasing a viral video.
Madu’s incredible journey, which has seen him become well-known and even shake hands with Queen Camila, has been filmed for the big screen and was scheduled to debut on Disney+ this Friday.
The documentary follows the teenager as he travels from Nigeria to Birmingham’s Elmhurst Ballet School over the course of a year, from 2021 to 2022.
Have fun reviewing movies and drinks
“I really feel really proud of myself, but it’s also surreal at the same time to see yourself in a movie as to me it’s just my life,” Madu stated to AFP.
“I often ask myself, “Why me? What if my dance video hadn’t gone viral? “I believe faith was the key,” he continued.
Elmhurst Ballet School saw Madu after a video of him dancing in a low-income neighborhood of Lagos, a 20 million-person metropolis, went viral.
Afterwards, he was dubbed the “Nigerian Billy Elliot” in homage to the eponymous 2000 British working-class boy film about his enthusiasm for ballet.
“I feel a sense of freedom and that I am where I am meant to be at this point in my life,” Madu stated to AFP.
