--- description: First black woman promoted to principal dancer in company's 75-year history title: Misty Copeland Becomes First Black Principal Ballerina at ABT image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte4978eddb9d9524e/6988591c0b72e3194e6e4be2/misty-copeland.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [dance](/tag/dance/) ## dance Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Misty Copeland Becomes First Black Principal Ballerina at American Ballet Theatre  by [Charlotte Alter](/author/charlotte-alter/)  ## Charlotte Alter Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:37 AM CUTPublished: Jun 30, 2015 5:03 PM CUT  Misty Copeland attends the 2015 Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 7, 2015 in New York City. Misty Copeland attends the 2015 Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall on June 7, 2015 in New York City.Mike Coppola—Getty Images  by [Charlotte Alter](/author/charlotte-alter/)  ## Charlotte Alter Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Senior Correspondent Updated: Dec 13, 2023 5:37 AM CUTPublished: Jun 30, 2015 5:03 PM CUT The American Ballet Theatre has promoted [Misty Copeland](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/01/arts/dance/misty-copeland-is-promoted-to-principal-dancer-at-american-ballet-theater.html?smid=tw-bna "undefined") to principal ballerina, making her the first black female principal ballerina in the company’s 75-year history. Copeland, who has been with the company for 14 years and danced as a soloist for eight, is one of the most widely visible ballerinas dancing today, with fame spreading far beyond the ballet world. She has written two books (_Firebird_, a children’s book, and _Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina_, a memoir) presented at the Tony’s, made an ad for Under Armour that got over 8 million views, and was honored this year as one of the [TIME 100\. ](http://time.com/3823308/misty-copeland-2015-time-100/ "undefined")Last week, she became the first African-American ballerina to dance _Swan Lake_ at the Metropolitan Opera House. Under Armour released a statement congratulating Copeland on her promotion, calling her “a woman who is driven not by her detractors, but by her desire to be great.” “Something that my mother instilled in me, as a biracial woman herself, and me being biracial, was that the world was going to view me as a black woman, no matter what I decided to do,” Copeland said at the [TIME 100 gala ](http://time.com/3831656/time-100-gala-misty-copeland/ "undefined")in April. “I had no idea that that was going to be my truth at some point in my life, when I moved to New York City at 17 years old and joined American Ballet Theatre and realized I was the only African-American woman in a company of 80 dancers.” “I never saw a ballerina who looked like me before,” noting that black ballerinas like Raven Wilkinson have mentored her and inspired her to “try and open up the doors for the history of African-American ballerinas that I feel is just not told.” “And I’m here to be a vessel for all these brown ballerinas who have come before me,” she said. ### Go Behind the Scenes of TIME 100's Cover Photo Shoots  Elon Musk on Kanye West: "Kanye’s been playing the long game all along, and we’re only just beginning to see why." Sebastian Kim for TIME  Portrait of musician Kanye West photographed at Milk Studios in Los Angeles, California for time on march 18th, 2015. Sebastian Kim for TIME  Antonin Scalia on Ruth Bader Ginsburg: "I can attest that her opinions are always thoroughly considered, always carefully crafted and almost always correct (which is to say we sometimes disagree)." Sebastian Kim for TIME  Portrait of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Ruth Bader Ginsburg photographed on Tuesday, March 17th, 2015 at the Supreme Court East Conference Room in Washington D.C. for TIME. Sebastian Kim for TIME  Portrait of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States Ruth Bader Ginsburg photographed on Tuesday, March 17th, 2015 at the Supreme Court East Conference Room in Washington D.C. for TIME. Sebastian Kim for TIME  Oliver Platt on Bradley Cooper: "It’s hard to make people, especially your friends, forget who you are onscreen. " Sebastian Kim for TIME  Portrait of actor Bradley Cooper photographed on Wednesday, March 4, 2015 at the TIME Magazine Studio in New York, NY. Sebastian Kim for TIME  Nadia Comaneci on Misty Copeland: "It doesn’t matter where you’re from. If you have the passion like Misty, you can be the best at what you do." Sebastian Kim for TIME  Portrait of author, entertainer, and American ballet dancer Misty Copeland photographed for Time on February 24th, 2015 at the American Ballet Theater in New York. Sebastian Kim for TIME  Photograph of author, entertainer, and American ballet dancer Misty Copeland photographed for Time on February 24th, 2015 at the American Ballet Theater in New York. Sebastian Kim for TIME  Christiane Amanpour on Jorge Ramos: "He knows he has a voice and is not afraid to use it. He shouts from every rooftop that Hispanic rights are human rights." Sebastian Kim for TIME  Portrait of Mexican- American journalist and author Jorge Ramos photographed on Thursday, March 19, 2015 in Doral, Florida. 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