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    ( 4UMF NEWS ) American Ballet Theatre Selects First Black Female Principal Dancer: Misty Copeland has served as an inspiration to all familiar with her success that transcends the ballet world, and now this latest news has everyone doing a pirouette for joy. The 32-year-old ballerina was named the principal dancer for the American Ballet Theatre, which ultimately makes her the first African-American female dancer to snag that title.

By @juliekentofficial via @RepostWhiz app: Exciting promotions at ABT this morning!! Misty Copeland, Principal Dancer!!! ❤️ #MistyCopeland #ballerina #weloveyou (#RepostWhiz app)

A video posted by Misty Copeland (@mistyonpointe) on Jun 30, 2015 at 10:19am PDT

Copeland has been making pointed strides within the ballet realm, most recently when she danced Odette/Odile in the ABT’s production of “Swan Lake.” In an interview with VIBE, Copeland spoke on “the push factor” that came with being part of the ABT entity. “With a company like American Ballet Theater, it’s a pretty small percentage of dancers that change their entire lives to get to this moment and still don’t make it. Something about that challenge drove me to push even harder,” she said. “Once I was accepted in ABT there came a second challenge of being the only African-American woman in the company. It was another push that was like, “You have to overcome this. You have to show that it’s possible to not fit in the mold of what people think a ballerina is, and also to set an example for the next generation.” Source

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