‘Ballet saved my life after I tried to kill myself at 17'

News24

05-07-2025

When he was 17, David Maluleka tried to end his life.
He describes that time as full of chaos – his father was in and out of hospital because of epilepsy, and when he was at home he'd abuse alcohol. This would lead to violent outbursts where he'd raise his voice and get physical with his mom and siblings.
It was during this dark period that David, from Hammanskraal in Johannesburg, turned to ballet as an escape. He found solace and purpose in movement.
That was nine years ago, and although he took up ballet relatively late, it came naturally and he was good at it – so good that today he is a professional ballet dancer.
The 26-year-old recently moved back to Johannesburg from Cape Town to work for his dream company, Joburg Ballet.
He will soon perform with both Cape Town City Ballet and Joburg Ballet in Tchaikovsky's classic, Swan Lake – his biggest performance yet – with shows from 4-13 July at Joburg Theatre and 25-27 July at the Cape Town Convention Centre.
David tells YOU his story.
When I was 13 my family moved to Kenilworth in Cape Town. My dad was a police officer investigating a high-profile case and for safety reasons we had to move to a new province.
Growing up my dad had always suffered from epilepsy. I witnessed him having many seizures that would land him in hospital.
He also suffered from mental breakdowns and would spend months in a mental institution.
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Then at about 15, his health began to deteriorate significantly and he became frustrated with his condition. This led to alcohol abuse, which had a devastating snowball effect on our family.
When my dad got drunk he'd use our home as a punching bag – and that came as a shock to me because in my younger years I had been raised in a loving home.
As the abuse continued I began looking for an outlet. It was during this time, when I was in Grade 11 at Oaklands High School, that I met my former dance teacher, Agatha Manuel.
One afternoon I decided to attend one of her classes – and I instantly fell in love with ballet.
But at the same time things started to feel overwhelming and unbearable – I felt like I had no purpose and that dying would be better.
It was 2015 and I was 17 when my dad had an outburst over a weekend. On the Sunday morning I woke up and took all his chronic medication. I threw it in a cereal bowl, made breakfast and ate it. A few hours later I took my bowl to the kitchen and then collapsed at the front door.
I woke up three days later in ICU.
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While in hospital I realised how much I missed dancing. So when I was discharged and went back to school I'd spend my afternoons in ballet classes, where I was able to dance without having to think about what was happening at home.
My dance teacher helped me join Dance For All studio, a non-profit organisation (NPC) that empowers disadvantaged children and youth through dance – and there I got to hone my skills.
In 2016, during my matric year, my dad resigned, bought my mom a house in Paarl and my parents separated.
PHOTO: Lauge Sorensen
After matric I earned a tertiary scholarship to study at the Cape Academy of Performing Arts.
I graduated in theatre and performing arts in 2020.
A year later, I started my internship with the Cape Town City Ballet graduate programme. I got a permanent job and worked there for three years before relocating to Joburg at the beginning of this year.
Looking back I realise that had it not been for dance, I don't think I would have survived that period in my life because whenever I felt overwhelmed I would just dance.
I always knew dance would be my way out and that one day I'd go professional and have enough money to help my mom, Violet, take care of my younger siblings, Kristena, Daniel and Candice.
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