Misty Copeland
Misty Copeland is a ballet dancer, author, producer, and arts advocate who became American Ballet Theatre’s first Black female principal dancer and now opens doors through her foundation and creative projects.
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Latest
Misty’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus her backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
- Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina2014 · Memoir author, with Charisse Jones
- Firebird2014 · Picture-book author; illustrated by Christopher Myers
- Flower2023 · Star and producer
- Bunheads, Act 2: The Dance of Courage2025 · Picture-book author
- No Good Deed with Cynthia Erivo2025 · Dancer
- Firebird Waltz2026 · Star Fire Academy series author
Overview
- From
- Born in Kansas City, Missouri; raised in San Pedro, California.
- Started ballet
- At age 13.
- Breakout
- Promoted to ABT principal dancer in 2015, the first Black woman in the company’s history.
- Creative work
- Ballet, books, film production, and arts access.
Mini bio
How it started.
Misty began ballet at 13 in Southern California. Scholarships took her to San Francisco Ballet School and ABT’s summer intensive. She joined ABT Studio Company in 2000, entered the corps de ballet in 2001, and became a soloist in 2007.
A new possibility.
Her title role in Alexei Ratmansky’s Firebird in 2012 became a career landmark. In June 2015, she became ABT’s first Black female principal dancer. Her memoir Life in Motion let readers follow the path behind that achievement.
More ways into dance.
Misty now shares ballet through children’s books, film, and her foundation’s work to make dance more accessible. She starred in and produced Flower, a dance film about community and intergenerational equity that premiered at Tribeca in 2023. After her 2025 ABT farewell, she continued performing and curated the Joyce’s 2026 Ballet Festival.
Creditschronological, newest first
Books
- 2026Firebird WaltzAuthor
- 2025Bunheads, Act 2: The Dance of CourageAuthor; illustrated by Setor Fiadzigbey
- 2014Life in Motion: An Unlikely BallerinaAuthor, with Charisse Jones
- 2014FirebirdAuthor; illustrated by Christopher Myers
Film and performance
- 2026The Joyce Ballet FestivalCurator
- 2026I Lied to You at the OscarsDancer
- 2025No Good Deed with Cynthia ErivoDancer
- 2023FlowerStar and producer
Awards
Quotes
So it’s a farewell. (But) it won’t be the end of me dancing.Misty Copeland, Associated Press
Speaking in June 2025 about leaving American Ballet Theatre and continuing her artistic work.
Trivia
- She is a Boys & Girls Clubs alumna and later became an ambassador for the organization.
- Her 2022 book The Wind at My Back pays tribute to her mentor and friend, ballerina Raven Wilkinson.
- Flower tells its story through dance rather than spoken dialogue.
Find Misty
Follow Misty’s performances, books, and work to bring more people into ballet.
Are you Misty Copeland?
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