One and a half years after winning the silver at the Asian Grand Prix International Ballet Competition, ballet scholar Juan Angelo “Gelo” De Leon is in London to join The Royal Ballet School’s two-week summer intensive program which was part of his prize in 2020.

Gelo, 14, expressed excitement and apprehension in an interview via Messenger on July 28, a day before he left for England with his father, Edwin De Leon, as companion.

“Medyo kinakabahan po ako kasi first time po namin ni Papa na makapunta po sa London at first time ko rin po na mga puro foreigner po makakasama ko. Excited din po ako kasi makakapunta po ako sa London kasi dati napapanood ko lang po at nakikita lang po sa internet ‘yung Royal Ballet tapos ngayon po makakapag-training po ako doon ng two weeks,” the dancer enthused.

(I am a bit nervous because it’s the first time that my father and I are going to London and it’s also my first time to have all foreigners as my fellow students. But I’m also excited to go there because before, I only got to watch and see The Royal Ballet on the internet but now I’m going there to train for two weeks.)

Pandemic restrictions on travel postponed Gelo’s participation in the renowned ballet school’s International Scholars Programme, running from August 1 to 12, which also includes students from such places as the United States, Mexico, Romania and Brazil.

Ballet Manila artistic director and Lisa Macuja School of Ballet (LMSB) director Lisa Macuja-Elizalde shared the news of Gelo’s training with The Royal Ballet School on Facebook last week, particularly citing his teachers and mentors Gerardo Francisco Jr., Osias Barroso, Jonathan Janolo, Eileen Lopez, Sofia Sangco-Peralta, Robert Peralta and Romeo Peralta – all of whom, at one time or another, have taught, trained and coached the young danseur. Gelo started his training at age 10 as a Project Ballet Futures scholar of Ballet Manila.

LMSB, through Dante Perez, had stayed in touch with The Royal Ballet School throughout the pandemic as it had been a priority to have Gelo avail of the scholarship as soon as it was possible to do so. With pandemic restrictions easing up, the London-based school began accepting students from abroad again.

Gelo said it took around six weeks to secure his visa and that while working on it, he continued to have ballet classes and rehearsals, while also wrapping up academic studies before the mid-year break.

Lisa is confident Gelo will learn a lot from the program. “I think just the experience of traveling – living in a dormitory with other students – and experiencing all these new teachers and environment will be beneficial already. But in the long term, this two-week intensive can translate to a full-term scholarship,” she said.

She added that Gelo’s traits and work attitude will serve him well in London. “He is intelligent and is a hard worker. He has been blessed with a good body and proportions, flexibility and turnout as well as a high jump and the ability to turn well. He is also very coordinated. Angelo has always been a front runner from the very beginning of his scholarship in PBF. Ask any of his teachers – they all love working with him.”

Gelo shared that his teachers advised him to enjoy being part of The Royal Ballet School program. “Sinabihan po ako ni Sir Geri na baka manibago daw po ako doon sa class nila kasi iba po ang style ng class nila, at kung puwede daw po or kung may time pa raw po i-try ko raw po ‘yung mga steps ng variation ko, i-practice ko pa rin daw po.” (Sir Geri [Francisco] said I might feel unaccustomed to the class because they have a different style. He also told me that if it’s possible or if there’s time, I should try the steps in my variation and continue practicing.)

Asked what more is in store for Gelo, Lisa replied she is very optimistic about his prospects in ballet. “Angelo is very young. Next up for him will be more competitions in the future, especially now that the world is opening back up. The possibilities are many.”

Gelo won the silver medal in the Performance B Division of the 2020 Asian Grand Prix which was conducted via video submission for the first time because of the pandemic. He danced the Benno Variation in the pas de trois from Swan Lake, a performance that netted him the scholarship to The Royal Ballet School.

In 2021, he duplicated his feat when he received another silver in the AGP’s Junior A Division, dancing the Colas Variation from La Fille Mal Gardee for his classical piece and Gerardo Francisco Jr.’s Strings for his contemporary solo. As part of his prize, he was given scholarships from the Australian Ballet School and the Dutch National Ballet Academy Summer School.

Earlier, in 2019, he had won the bronze medal in AGP’s Pre-Competitive B Division in Hong Kong, the first international competition he had participated in.

In addition to the individual honors he has earned, Gelo was also part of LMSB’s scholar teams that won group golds in the AGP and the Asian Ballet Competition.