Lourdes Leon Confirms Madonna is Big on Supporting Her Kids’ Extracurriculars

Even as Lourde Leon modeled for Miu Miu and Jean-Paul Gualtier, she’s remained fiercely private — until now. In the latest issue of Vanity Fair, Leon reveals candid insights into her personal life and family, and she also confirms something about Madonna’s parenting style many people have long suspected: she’s definitely the kind of mother who makes sure her kids succeed in their extracurricular activities.

Leon began showing interest in dancing when she was just three years old. “My mom really went hard for that once she saw there was potential,” she said, and began taking ballet classes at that tender age. Leon later studied dance at the famed Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts Read (where she briefly dated Timothée Chalamet) in Manhattan, New York, and later at the University of Michigan and SUNY-Purchase Conservatory of Dance. “You think that your body is not capable of something until you just have to do it,” said Leon, of the program’s long studio rehearsal days.

Having a famous parent is obviously an asset in kickstarting a career, but nothing is possible without parental support. Madonna has also eagerly allowed her six children to explore their interests, even if they are outside of the performing arts world. On Instagram, she shared a video of her adopted son, David Banda, playing soccer as she cheered from the sidelines. She even moved to Portugal for a time to become a full-time soccer mom. Her youngest adopted daughters, twins Stella and Estere, also enjoy boxing and dancing, and from her video, it looks like they’re got quite an exceptional gym set-up to practice their sport. Daughter Mercy seems to be an ace at the piano, amongst other talents. Son Rocco meanwhile has taken courses at London’s famed Central Saint Martins art school.