Misty Copeland is a former principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre, and in 2015, she became the first Black woman to be promoted to the position in the company’s seventy-five-year history. Copeland first joined ABT’s Studio Company in September 2000, joined American Ballet Theatre as a member of the corps de ballet in April 2001, and in August 2007, became the company’s second African American female Soloist and the first in two decades. 25 years later, Copeland officially retired from the American Ballet Theatre with her final performance on Wednesday, October 22nd, 2025.

She is the New York Times bestselling author of several books, including Life in Motion, Ballerina Body, Black Ballerinas, The Wind at My Back, and the picture books Bunheads, Bunheads, Act 2: The Dance of Courage and Firebird, with her next book, Firebird Waltz, set to be released on Tuesday, August 25th. In 2022, she launched the Misty Copeland Foundation with its first signature program, BE BOLD, which aims to bring greater diversity, equity, and inclusion to dance, especially ballet. Also in 2022, Copeland created her production company Life in Motion Productions and produced her short film FLOWER, telling a powerful story through dance and movement to highlight intergenerational equity in the community of Oakland, California. FLOWER premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2023. Copeland has been named one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People and was named one of Glamour’s Women of the Year. Most recently, she performed “I Lied to You” at the 2026 Academy Awards with the cast of SINNERS, a Best Original Song nominee.