Misty Copeland

Misty Danielle Copeland (born September 10, 1982) is an American ballet dancer and author. She has danced primarily for American Ballet Theatre (ABT), one of the three leading classical ballet companies in the United States. On June 30, 2015, Copeland became the first African American woman to be promoted to principal dancer in ABT's 75-year history.

Copeland was considered a prodigy who rose to stardom despite not starting ballet until age 13. Two years later, in 1998, her ballet teachers were serving as her custodial and legal guardians, and her mother was fighting a custody battle against them. At the same time, Copeland – already an award-winning dancer – was receiving professional offers. The legal issues involved filings for emancipation by Copeland and restraining orders by her mother. Both sides dropped legal proceedings, and Copeland moved home to begin studying under a new teacher, who was a former ABT member.

In 1997, Copeland won the Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Award as the best dancer in Southern California. After two summer workshops with ABT, she became a member of ABT's Studio Company in 2000, its corps de ballet in 2001, and an ABT soloist in 2007. As a soloist from 2007 to 2015, she was described as having matured into a more contemporary and sophisticated dancer. She retired from ABT in 2025.

In addition to her dance career, Copeland has become a public speaker, author, celebrity spokesperson and stage performer. She has written two autobiographical books and narrated a documentary about her career challenges, A Ballerina's Tale. In 2015, she was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine, appearing on its cover. She performed on Broadway in On the Town, toured as a featured dancer for Prince and appeared on the reality television shows A Day in the Life and So You Think You Can Dance. She has endorsed products and companies such as T-Mobile, Coach, Inc., Dr Pepper, Seiko, The Dannon Company and Under Armour.