“The difference between being an amazing technician and being a soloist or principal is mastering those interpretive flourishes to tell the best story. Otherwise, you aren’t a ballerina—you’re just another dancer.”

Misty Copeland made history as the first African American Female Principal Dancer with the prestigious American Ballet Theatre. 

When she discovered ballet, however, Misty was living in a shabby motel room, struggling with her five siblings for a place to sleep on the floor

Copeland received the 2008 Leonore Annenberg Fellowship in the Arts and was named National Youth of the Year Ambassador for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America in 2013.  In 2014, President Obama appointed Copeland to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition.  

She is the recipient of a 2014 Dance Magazine Award and was named to the 2015 TIME 100 by TIME Magazine.  Copeland is the author of the best-selling memoir, Life in Motion, children’s book Firebird and Ballerina Body.