Misty Copeland is the first African American Female principle ballerina to be part of the American Ballet Theatre in it’s 75 year history.

In September 2000, Misty started her ABT Studio Company experience. She was promoted to principle dancer in August 2015 and is still working at age 39. Her dance journey started in middle school when she joined drill team. The coaches recognized her talent, and they sent her to be coached by Cynthia Bradley at the local Boys & Girls Club. By age 13, she was taking classes at Pedro Ballet School. Eventually, Copeland moved with Bradley and her family to be closer to the ballet studio. When she was 15, she was awarded an award called the Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Award. By the summertime, she was accepted into the intensive summer program with a full scholarship at the San Francisco Ballet in 1998. During the year 2000, Copeland was offered another full scholarship to the ABT’s intensive summer program. At the end of the summer program, she was offered a spot on ABT’s studio company. She then joined the ABT’s corps de ballet where she was the only African American women out of all the dancers. She differed from the other dancers in the company, but she held her own and gained lead roles in many performances. The same year she joined ABT in 2015, she was named to the TIME 100, TIME’s annual list of the world’s most influential people. She was also awarded a Shorty Award for Best in Dance in 2016, along with many other awards for her dancing talents.

Misty Copeland has used her platform for many influential purposes. Her determination to her craft inspires many individuals from all different racial and economic backgrounds. Misty has released seven books over the course of her career, along with features in multiple movies. Her representation for other young aspiring dancers allows them to have a role model to look up to. Misty’s background proves that you don’t need to come from money in order to succeed. Hard work and motivation can lead to a major account for her talents. Since she began dancing later in the game, she had to work harder in order to make up for her lost time. This also goes to show that joining a sport later doesn’t automatically mean that it is impossible. Misty Copeland’s work stretches beyond dance and has shown time and time again that she is an inspiration for many.

https://www.cbsnews.com/video/misty-copeland-makes-ballet-history/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ddarrb8u7p8