A Girl Named Misty

• Finding Her Shine
• Stepping Out
• Putting In the Work
• The Making of a Star
• City of Dreams
• Dancing in the Spotlight
• A Girl Named Alexa

Finding Her Shine

Misty Danielle Copeland was born on September 10th, 1982, in Kansas City, Missouri. She moved with her mom, Sylvia, and siblings to Southern California when she was two years old. Over the next several years, she continued to move between apartments and houses with her family. Sometimes, her family had to make do with very little money.

With two big brothers, a big sister, and both a younger brother and sister, Misty had to share her mom’s limited attention. Her face would light up when her mom complimented something she did in school, but her worries continue to nag her. What if her best wasn’t good enough? What if they had to move again?

When Misty was seven years old living in San Pedro, California, Misty was watching TV when a movie about an Olympic gymnast named Nadia Comaneci came on. Her flips, spins, and leaps across the floor amazed Misty. Nadia’s mix of acrobatics and dance made Misty want to move like that, too.

In her yard, Misty would teach herself how to do cartwheels and handstands. She was able to master gymnastics moves with very little effort. She’d pretend to perform for an audience and imagine their roaring applause when she did all of her moves just right.

Something special filled Misty’s heart when she listened to Mariah Carey songs, too. She felt a connection to Mariah, who was biracial, just like Misty. Misty’s mom and dad were both half black and half white. Seeing someone who looked like her who was so successful inspired Misty. When Misty would make up dances in her bedroom, she was able to act out the words and feelings as the music would flow through her. It was like a light switch that flipped on inside her. Misty’s worries about school, money, and where they lived would disappear as she danced.

Stepping Out

In middle school, Misty set a big goal that would change her life. She wanted to earn a spot on the school’s drill team, a type of dance group. And not just any spot. Misty wanted to be captain. Misty’s big sister, Erica, had been a star on the same team, and her mom had been a professional cheerleader. Could Misty, the girl who was afraid to read aloud in class, become the leader of the group?

On audition day, Misty stepped in front of the judges and gave it her all. She not only became captain, but caught the eye of Coach Elizabeth Cantine, who had studied ballet. As Coach Cantine watched Misty during practice, she knew Misty had a gift. Coach Cantine told Misty a friend of hers was teaching ballet at the San Pedro Boys & Girls Club. Misty was nervous about taking the class, so she sat on the bleachers watching other children learn basic ballet steps. For two weeks she just sat and watched. Not even the teacher’s encouragement convinced her to join in.

Then one day, Misty changed into a t-shirt, shorts, and socks, and decided to give ballet a chance. She was surrounded by kids wearing leotards and tights, and she felt out of place. The moves made her feel awkward and insecure, and by the end of the class she decided her time with ballet was over.

Putting In the Work

Cindy Bradley, who taught the ballet class, had other plans. She saw Misty’s talent. and she convinced her to come back. At age thirteen, Misty was older than most beginners, but she was a natural. Misty was offered a full scholarship to the ballet school. All of her classes and ballet clothes would be provided. Misty’s mom is so proud of her daughter earning a chance to develop her talent.

Almost every day, Misty went to Cindy’s studio. The classes were grueling and required focus, but every step, leap, and spin filled Misty with joy. Soon, Misty was excelling and nothing could stop her. Just two months after starting lessons, Misty went en pointe. Dancing en pointe is a skill that takes most dancers years to master. Cindy told Misty she was perfect for ballet. She could perform moves easily that others needed a lot of training and practice to do. She had a ballerina’s form. Misty knew in her heart ballet was where she belonged.

Meanwhile, life at home was getting harder. Misty’s family had to find another place to live and moved into a motel room. Her sister, Erica, took the long bus ride with Misty from Cindy’s studio back to their home. Between school, her daily ballet practice, and long bus rides, Misty was gone a lot. Misty’s mom worried that Misty was away from her family and friends too much. Her mom said Misty should give up ballet.

The Making of a Star

Misty was devastated by her mother’s suggestion of quitting ballet. She told Cindy, and Cindy’s asked Misty’s mom if Misty could live with Cindy’s family during the week so Misty could be closer to the studio. Misty would continue to go home each weekend. Misty’s mom agreed.

At Cindy’s studio, Misty continued to improve. She mastered every move and took advanced classes. People called her a prodigy. She watched ballet on TV and carried dance magazines in her backpack. Ballet became her life.

Though she loved ballet, Misty had never actually seen a live performance until Cindy took her to see Don Quixote. At nineteen, the star of the show, Paloma Herrera, had become a principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre (ABT) in New York City. ABT was one of the top ballet companies in the world. Misty watched Paloma and dreamed of becoming an ABT principal dancer, too.

Meanwhile Misty’s mom and siblings continued to cheer as Misty dazzled audiences with her performances like in The Nutcracker and The Chocolate Nutcracker.

Becoming a great ballerina meant working long hours. Some weekends Misty didn’t have time to come home. This upset her mother. She loved watching Misty and wanted her to be happy and keep dancing, but she felt she should be spending more time with her family. Cindy wanted to keep Misty living and training with her. Misty felt torn apart.

City of Dreams

In time, Misty decided she would go live with her mom and siblings and go to a different ballet studio close to home. After a while, Misty’s mom got a new job and the family moved from the motel to a nice apartment. Misty worked hard at the new ballet studio and earned an invitation to a summer program at the American Ballet Theatre.

Misty’s dedication and talent wowed the people at ABT. The next year, after Misty graduated from high school, she moved to New York City to become a member of the ABT, the same company that her idol, Paloma Herrera, danced for.

Walking around the busy streets of New York, Misty saw a beautiful mix of people of different races and backgrounds living and working together. But inside ABT, she saw something else. When she was promoted at age nineteen to the corps de ballet, Misty was the only black woman out of dozens of dancers.

Shortly after joining the corps de ballet, Misty felt a terrible pain while dancing. She had injured her back and would need a year to recover. When Misty returned to ABT, she had changed. Her thin body had matured and had more curves, a shape some thought wasn’t right for ballet.

It hurt Misty to know that some people didn’t want women with brown skin and curves to be ballerinas. Over time, other African Americans in ballet would help Misty see she belonged. She was not dancing for herself anymore. She was dancing for every African American ballerina who never got the chance to rise to the top. She continued to dance for kids who would one day follow her example.

Dancing in the Spotlight

Misty showed everyone she deserved spotlight. At the age of twenty-four, she became a soloist. Misty was only the second African American female soloist in the company’s history. Five years later, she got the role of a lifetime in The Firebird. This famous ballet has been around for more than over a hundred years. Misty would be the first African American woman to dance the role of the Firebird for a major ballet company.

For months, Misty poured all of herself into practicing. Even when her leg began to hurt, she kept going. Misty pushed through the pain, not realizing she had several fractures.

One day, Misty saw a huge banner hanging outside of the Metropolitan Opera House. It was a photo of her as the Firebird. With tears in her eyes, she knew that girls would see her brown skin and curves, and see a reflection of themselves.

On opening night, Misty’s pain was horrible. She focused instead on the people who believed in her, and she became the Firebird. Days later, Misty knew she couldn’t continue. She had to take another break from ABT and have surgery. Would she be able to return?

Not only did Misty come back to ABT, but three years after her performances the Firebird, the artistic director of ABT told Misty to take a bow. She had been promoted to principal dancer—the highest level a dancer can reach. Misty had finally achieved her dream. She was the first African American female principal dancer in the company’s history. As her ABT family cheered, she could feel the world applauding. Misty, the shy little girl with the big talent, had become the star she was always meant to be.

A Girl Named Alexa

There are a lot of young girls helping to make positive changes in our world today, just like Misty Copeland did. Alexa Narvaez is one of those girls.

It all started with a song. My dad and I love to sing together. One time when I was little, my dad shared one of our songs online for my cousins to see. If you can believe it, more than 30 million people have watched that first video. Now I’m thirteen years old with a baby brother and my dad and I are still making videos every week. We have now had more than 210 million views on our songs! Over the years, we’ve been invited to singing places like China, Canada, and Australia. and even on a popular TV show here in the U.S.! It’s fun to sing in front of people, and I love singing with my dad.

When I was younger, I was bullied a lot. Not all of the comments on our videos are good, but seeing the good comments inspires me and gives me good vibes. Singing has helped me to learn to like myself more. If I’m having a bad day, I’ll sing a happy song. It makes me feel good, and strong, and gives me hope. The best part of this experience has been making myself and other people happy through my music. I hope our videos are helping other people believe in themselves and inspiring them to find something that they love to do.