Born: 10 September 1982, United States
Died: NA
Country most active: United States
Also known as: NA
The following bio was written by Emma Rosen, author of On This Day She Made History: 366 Days With Women Who Shaped the World and This Day In Human Ingenuity & Discovery: 366 Days of Scientific Milestones with Women in the Spotlight, and has been republished with permission.
Misty Copeland is a renowned American ballet dancer with the American Ballet Theatre (ABT). On June 30, 2015, she made history as ABT’s first African-American principal dancer.
Copeland’s ballet journey began at 13, but she swiftly gained recognition. In 1998, a custody battle ensued between her ballet teachers (her custodial guardians) and her mother. Legal disputes followed, including Copeland seeking emancipation and her mother seeking restraining orders. Both cases were later dropped, and Copeland continued her training with a former ABT member.
Copeland won the Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Award in 1997. She joined ABT’s Studio Company in 2000, became part of the corps de ballet in 2001, and ascended to ABT soloist in 2007.
Beyond ballet, Copeland excelled in public speaking, endorsements, and stage performances. She authored two autobiographical books and narrated the documentary “A Ballerina’s Tale.” In 2015, Time magazine recognized her as one of the world’s 100 most influential people. Copeland also ventured into Broadway, touring with Prince and appearing on reality shows. She endorsed products and companies like T-Mobile, Coach, Inc., Dr. Pepper, Seiko, The Dannon Company, and Under Armour.