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Misty Copeland is an American ballet dancer for American Ballet Theater. On June 30th 2015, she became the first African American woman to be promoted to principle dancer in American Ballet Theater's 75-year history.

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Misty Copeland was born on the 10th of September 1982 in Missouri. She was raised in San Pedro, California. Her parents are Doug Copeland and Sylvia DelaCerna. Misty is the youngest of four children from her mother's second marriage and she has two younger half-siblings, one each from her mother's third and fourth marriages. Misty did not see her father between the ages of two and twenty-two.

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When Misty was around 11 she became captain of the school drill team. Copeland's natural grace came to the attention of her classically trained drill team coach, Elizabeth Cantine.

Cantine convinced Copeland to attend a ballet class at her local Boys & Girls Club where Cynthia Bradley (Cantine's Friend) taught a free ballet class at the club once a week. Her mum allowed her to go to the club after school. Bradley invited Misty to attend class at her small local ballet school, San Pedro Dance Center. Misty began her ballet studies at the late age of 13 at the San Pedro Dance Center. After three months of study, Misty was en pointe.

Her mum told her that she would have to give up ballet, but Bradley wanted her to continue and offered to host her. Her mum agreed to this, and Misty spent the weekdays with the Bradleys and the weekends at home with her mum.

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The First African American ABT Principle Dancer

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The First African American ABT Principle Dancer

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At fifteen, Misty won first place in the Music Center Spotlight Awards. She studied at the San Francisco Ballet School and ABT’s Summer Intensive on a full scholarship. She was declared ABT’s National Coca-Cola Scholar in 2000.

Misty joined American Ballet Theater's Studio Company in September 2000. She joined American Ballet Theater as a member of the corps de ballet in April 2001. In August 2007 Misty became the company’s second African American female Soloist (and the first in two decades!).

In June 2015, Misty was promoted to principal dancer, making her the first African American woman to ever be promoted to the position in the company’s 75-year history.

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American Ballet Theater (ABT)  is a classical ballet company which is based in NYC. ABT was founded in 1939  by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant.

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Misty is still a principle dancer with the ABT

She has preformed in lots of shows and has been in many leading roles, including; Clara in the Nutcracker, Firebird in  Firebird, Giselle in Giselle, Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Odette in Swan Lake, and lots more!

She has written 3 books; Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina, Firebird and Ballerina Body.

She has teamed up with many different companies, including Under Armour and Mattel, and in 2016, Mattel created a Misty Copeland Barbie doll.

She has been in countless interviews. (Misty on Jimmy Kimmel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_F4wV314kM)

She has been cast as the lead ballerina role in an upcoming Disney film, The Nutcracker and the Four Realms.

In February 2016, Copeland and, the then president, Barack Obama were interviewed together on topics of race, gender, etc.

A documentary film called, A Ballerina's Tale, was made about her in 2015

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I chose Misty Copeland as my inspirational person for the following reasons;

She doesn't give up on her dreams - people told her that she couldn't be a professional ballet dancer because she is black and because she only started dancing when she was 13. But despite all of this, Misty became a principal dancer (the highest rank in a dance company) in ABT (one of the major ballet companies in the US, alongside San Francisco Ballet and New York City Ballet, etc.) . Not only this but she is one of the most famous ballet dancers in the world!

She stands up for African American people (women especially) and equality -  For all the time Misty has been dancing, she has nearly always been the only black woman. But she has kept going and has reached the very top. She shows young girls and boys that the color of their skin can't stop them in succeeding in life and that if someone says otherwise, to keep going anyway. Ballet especially is a sport that majority white people participate in but Misty shows aspiring dancers that whatever the race, you can still succeed in dance.

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http://mistycopeland.com

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I think Misty Copeland is a very inspiring woman. I think that every little girl should hear her story, because she came from nothing and is now one of the biggest faces of dance. Not only that but she wouldn't let the haters bring her down and everyone should aspire to be like her in this way. She is such an amazing dancer and it's all down to her hard work and determination.

I personally think that it was so appalling that it took 75 years for ABT to have a black principle dancer!

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misty_Copeland

http://mistycopeland.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Ballet_Theatre

https://www.google.ie/search?q=misty+copeland&rlz=1C1CHWA_enIE633IE635&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwisqOvu8YTXAhVDPxoKHXOTBrYQ_AUICigB&biw=1366&bih=613
http://www.abt.org/dancers/detail.asp?Dancer_ID=56