Boy choreographs ballet recital for himself and his sister with studio's performance postponed by pandemic
Maximus Turner is an 8-year-old boy who loves to dance.
When he was not able to participate in his dance studio's end-of-year recital, first because of the coronavirus pandemic, and later because of his family's military move, Maximus choreographed his own at-home recital.
Maximus also included his 6-year-old sister Liliana in the dance recital, which his mom filmed and shared on Instagram in June.
"I love doing recitals," Maximus told "Good Morning America." "I love when I get to learn new tricks and when I get to practice ballet."
Maximus, who now lives with his mom, sister and dad -- a member of the U.S. Army -- in Alabama, has been dancing "nonstop" since the age of 2, according to his mom, Michelle Turner.
"He's always doing aerials and stuff in our living room," she said. "He dances nonstop. It’s in his bones."
When the family moves towns, which they do fairly frequently as a military family, the first thing Turner said she does is look for a dance studio, so that they can then choose to live somewhere close by.
Then Turner looks into whether there are any other boys dancing at the studio, because that can be rare too, depending on where the family is stationed.
In a sport that is predominantly white and female, Maximus, who is also a baton twirler, stands out not only as a boy but as a Black male dancer, according to Turner.
"That’s why I admire him," she said, adding that Maximus has "been the new kid in five places" due to the family's moves.
Turner shares videos of Maximus dancing on Instagram as an outlet for him to express his creativity, but also in hopes of breaking down stereotypes and inspiring other Black boys to try dancing.
"Today we had to have 'the talk,'" she captioned one Instagram post showing a photo of Maximus doing a heel stretch. "The conversation that most people don't want to see Maximus' heel stretch when they first meet him -- including doctors, grocery shoppers, new neighbors, your sister's friends, the movers and many boys. We talked about how to save his special move around other dance and color guard people."
"We then talked about how some boys may make fun of his heel stretch, say dancing is for girls and call him names. We talked about how those people could be bullies, how to respond and how those people didn't deserve to be his friends. Surround yourself with positive vibes, don't let negative people bring you down," she wrote.
Maximus, who plans to be a professional dancer when he grows up, also hopes his story inspires others and breaks down stereotypes.
"They don’t need to be scared," he said when asked for his advice to other boys.
