Pierre Png having a ballet of a time
Pierre Png may have completed shooting for The Gentleman, but he's not giving up ballet yet
Local actor Pierre Png's latest TV drama has unleashed his inner ballet dancer.
The 42-year-old, who plays a ballet teacher in a new Channel 8 series, The Gentlemen, is continuing ballet classes even after filming ended in May because he finds them to be "very stress-relieving".
Png, who had never learnt ballet before, spent almost two months training under a dance choreographer for the part.
He took lessons once or twice a week and each class lasted an hour - the equivalent of "two hours at the gym", according to him.
On why he persisted with ballet even after production for The Gentlemen ended, Png told The New Paper yesterday at the show's press conference: "It came from the stubborn side of me where I wanted to learn the whole (ballet) routine myself.
"I want to learn how to do a proper pirouette.
"A part of it comes from me being a perfectionist. I was very attracted and taken by the precision and beauty of ballet.
"Learning it for the show was very stressful because I was racing against time. Now that I'm learning it for leisure, I'm able to go deeper into it."
The Gentlemen premieres on Aug 9 at 9pm and is about three brothers (Png, Chen Hanwei and Aloysius Pang)working in female-oriented industries.
LAUGHED
Png said that his wife, former actress and host Andrea De Cruz, 42, laughed when she found out about his latest role.
"But she could see that I was really enjoying myself, so she said, 'I never have to worry about you when I see you this engrossed or dedicated to a role,'" he said.
"She said she loves how my thighs have grown ever since I took on ballet. She also loves the elegance and posture."
But Png admitted he is "nowhere close" to De Cruz when it comes to dancing as she is a "natural dancer".
"Beat salsa, beat cha cha, beat anything - her body just moves according to the music," he said.
And Png was, naturally, self-conscious about his thighs as he had to wear white tights.
But when it came to filming dance scenes with his Taiwanese partner Kelly, he did not care how his body parts looked.
Png said with a laugh: "The sad thing is I couldn't be bothered about it because there were other important things to worry about.
"I had to remember the dance routine and choreography.
"But I do realise that the outfit comes with protection to give proper support.
"There is a cup to hold everything in place, so that when we are doing our leaps and movements, not only am I protected, but my dance partner is also protected."
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