If Misty Copeland performs as Odette in Swan Lake in Brisbane on Wednesday September 3 as scheduled, Australian audiences will have the privilege of witnessing a historic moment in ballet. She will become the first black dancer in American Ballet Theatre’s existence to perform the role.
Copeland is to ballet what Serena Williams is to tennis – sexy, beautiful and ground-breaking. She is a soloist at ABT. That fact alone already makes her a history-making figure. She is one of only three black dancers at ABT at present, and in the company’s entire history she is only the third black dancer to have been appointed to that position. Not only is she black, she has a body that is muscular and voluptuous – almost as big a “handicap”, in the world of ballet, as not having white skin.
It is timely for Australian audiences that her autobiography, Life in Motion: an Unlikely Ballerina, has just been released. An autobiography by a mere 31-year-old would be premature for most people, but in Copeland’s case it is justified. In the US she is already a household name: not just because of her huge popularity and box-office appeal, but because of her turbulent and very public childhood.
Copeland is one of six children from a broken family. Her mother married four times (and also had a series of boyfriends). Little Misty did not begin ballet training till she was thirteen – her first experience of the artform was at a youth club drill team. At that time the Copeland family was living in a single rundown motel room, the children sleeping on the floor. When teacher Cynthia Bradley spotted Misty’s talent, she took her into her home and all but adopted her. In the classroom Bradley nurtured the young dancer’s prodigious talent;at home she introduced her to a middle-class lifestyle, nutritious meals in place of fast food, and her first sight of “real” professional ballet – via DVDs of ABT. While Copeland’s mother was at first in agreement with the arrangement, she soon became resentful of Bradley’s influence over her daughter. The situation developed into a lengthy and traumatic custody battle – salivated over in the media and tearing at Misty’s loyalties and ambitions.
Misty’s mother won the battle, but the experience improved her sense of responsibility to her talented daughter. She ensured Misty continued her training a good school. Copeland continued to improve as a dancer, and was eventually accepted into ABT’s studio company. She left home for the delights of New York City, this time with her mother’s blessing.
Copeland was now 19 and considered to be blessed with the perfect “Balanchine” proportions and a flexible, fluid body. But she was physically immature. A doctor, worried about her lack of development, put her on the pill. Within months her body changed dramatically into the curvaceous being she is today. Appalled at her new shape, she plunged into an eating disorder. Her version, however, did not involve starvation. Instead she binged on dozens of donuts. Her weight problems were compounded by a lumbar spine injury, which required her to be immobilised for nearly a year.
ABT stuck by her, however, and eventually she learnt to accept and cope with her new form by adjusting her training and diet. She was already being spotted, however, perhaps because of, rather than despite of, her unconventional appearance. She was regularly invited to dance with Prince before audiences of thousands, and became his regular collaborator. She was chosen by celebrated choreographer Alexei Ratmanksy to star in a new work, appeared in many ads, adjudicated for So You Think You Can Dance, and became the poster girl and spokesperson for many racial diversity advocacy campaigns. She even has her own line of dancewear. In a very short time she has achieved an almost celebrity status.
Copeland’s autobiography begins and ends with her appearance in the lead role in Ratmansky’s adaptation of The Firebird, a role she had always coveted. Her performance was a triumph, but it was the only time she danced the part – she sustained a stress fracture in her tibia and did not dance again for another seven months.
That was in September, 2013. Presumably then this performance in Brisbane is a quite a comeback for Copeland. Odette is one of her dream roles. Of course, for a dancer that is not an unusual aim. But for a black dancer, it has been an almost unattainable one. Swan Lake is the most classical and most white of all ballets, in many senses of the word – in its European heritage, its feminine idealisation, its symbolic division between white and black in the dual character of Odette/Odile. It will be a true marvel to see that duality turned upside down by this “unlikely” dancer.
Life in Motion is an engrossing read. Copeland, though she confesses to being a naturally shy person, writes about her many difficulties with great honesty, lack of bitterness and blame, and has great compassion for those who wronged her. In many ways her story is a classic tale of triumph over adversity – a movie is already in the offing! I highly recommend this book.
- KAREN VAN ULZEN
See here for dates and other casts.
‘Life in Motion: An Unlikely Ballerina’ (co-written by Charisse Jones), is published by Simon and Schuster.
See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZY0cdXr_1MA for Misty's 'Under Amour' clip.