Nationality: Kansas City, MO, American
Ethnicity: African descent.
She was also a featured dancer for Prince.
American Ballet Theatre (ABT), one of the three leading classical ballet companies in the United States.
A strong body can also be beautiful-Sola
On June 30, 2015, Copeland became the first African American woman to be promoted to principal dancer in ABT’s 75-year history.
What Touring With Prince Taught A Young Dancer About Building A Career
Copeland was considered a prodigy who rose to stardom despite not starting ballet until the age of 13.
Meeting President Obama.
In 2015, she was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time, appearing on its cover.
Copeland, who was already an award-winning dancer, was fielding professional offers.
In 1997, Copeland won the Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Award as the best dancer in Southern California.
After two summer workshops with ABT, she became a member of ABT’s Studio Company in 2000 and its corps de ballet in 2001, and became an ABT soloist in 2007.
As a soloist from 2007 to mid-2015, she was described as having matured into a more contemporary and sophisticated dancer.
Talented Photographer > henryleutwyler.com
In addition to her dance career, Copeland has become a public speaker, celebrity spokesperson and stage performer.
She has written two autobiographical books and narrated a documentary about her career challenges, A Ballerina’s Tale.
She performed on Broadway in On the Town, toured as a featured dancer for Prince and appeared on the reality television shows A Day in the Life and So You Think You Can Dance.
She has endorsed products and companies such as T-Mobile, Dr Pepper, Seiko and Under Armour.
In 2008, Copeland won the Leonore Annenberg Fellowship in the Arts, which funds study with master teachers and trainers outside of ABT. The two-year fellowships are in recognition of “young artists of extraordinary talent with the goal of providing them with additional resources in order to fully realise their potential”.
In 2013, she was named National Youth of the Year Ambassador by the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. In 2014, Copeland was named to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition and received an honorary doctorate from the University of Hartford for her contributions to classical ballet and helping to diversify the art form.
Copeland was a Dance Magazine Awards 2014 honoree. After her promotion as principal dancer, Copeland was named one of Glamour‘s Women of the Year for 2015; one of ESPN‘s 2015 Impact 25 athletes and influencers who have made the greatest impact for women in sports; and, by Barbara Walters, one of the 10 “most fascinating” people of 2015.
–Photographer Henry Leutwyler
In 2016, Copeland won a Shorty Award for Best in Dance in Social Media.
An artist rendition of her beauty
–@albypretty art
From A fan
Quote: Just want you to know your biggest fan is a little person who dreams of meeting you. She watches your clips and videos all the time and especially before she goes to dance class. She went to a show for National Dance week and you were all she talked about. Just wanted you to know Lola is your biggest fan! We love you!
A Ballerina’s Tale. She ran and got her tutu on and started dancing.
Representation matters
