Top 100 Quotes About Misty Copeland
#1. With her grace and grit, and the will to lead change, Misty Copeland is truly a ballerina for our time.
Heather Watts
#2. Every time I dance, I'm trying to prove myself to myself.
Misty Copeland
#3. I wanted to open the dialogue about race in ballet and bring more people in. It's just beautiful to see the interest that has exploded for such an incredible art form that I will forever be grateful to!
Misty Copeland
#4. Finding ballet was like finding this missing piece of myself.
Misty Copeland
#5. I was definitely a late bloomer and didn't really come into my own until I was probably in my 20s.
Misty Copeland
#6. 'The Company' was interesting. I didn't love it, although it might be compelling to someone who isn't a dancer. There wasn't a lot of dialogue, and you were just kind of observing the creative process of choreography and in class.
Misty Copeland
#7. I shouldn't even be wearing a tutu. I don't have the right legs, my muscles are too big.
Misty Copeland
#8. Ballet became this escape for me. I feel like I was on my own a lot. I was searching for stability, so I was going off on my own and imagining what I thought stability was. Ballet became a way for me to cope.
Misty Copeland
#9. It's hard to change someone's ideas when they might not even really consciously know that they're being racist, or have racist ideas, just because ballet has been this way for hundreds of years.
Misty Copeland
#10. It's difficult to exist as a woman, especially I think as a powerful woman. You want to stand strong and you want to be considered and equal.
Misty Copeland
#11. I don't eat a ton of pasta or bread. But I eat dessert almost every night, and I drink. You need a bit of balance, and I've found mine.
Misty Copeland
#12. I don't think a lot of people really understand the commitment it takes to being a character that an actor in Hollywood would take to approaching a role that they're doing.
Misty Copeland
#13. Don't hold on to the barre like, 'I might die.' It's just ballet.
Misty Copeland
#14. Ballet was this thing that just felt so innate in me, like I was meant to be doing this.
Misty Copeland
#15. I think that training is the key, definitely, and I devoted my life to it.
Misty Copeland
#17. I think that I'm so fortunate to have found classical ballet. It completely changed my life and it shaped the person that I am today, on and off the stage.
Misty Copeland
#18. I think all dancers are control freaks a bit. We just want to be in control of ourselves and our bodies. That's just what the ballet structure, I think, kind of puts inside of you.
Misty Copeland
#19. The best piece of advice that I remember probably on a daily basis is to accept everything about me that is different. That is what makes me special.
Misty Copeland
#20. A lot of people think, "Oh I'm going to eat whatever I want and then go to the gym." And I've definitely been one of those people and it just doesn't give me the results that I need to have the physique of a ballerina.
Misty Copeland
#21. My family didn't have very much money, so ballet wasn't even on my radar; I just found it randomly when I was 13 at a Boys & Girls Club. We were practicing in a basketball court in gym clothes with some old socks on. Even though it terrified me at first, I found that I really liked it.
Misty Copeland
#22. Depending on the level you're at in your company, the higher you go up in rank, usually the longer you can dance.
Misty Copeland
#23. I never experienced getting nervous on stage. I think I was most comfortable there.
Misty Copeland
#24. That it's possible to do positive things and I think that's how we're going to set an example to be respected as women in the world.
Misty Copeland
#25. I had no idea what I was walking into, and the years and years of hard work it would take. I felt like an outsider and like it was never going to happen. But even if I would have known, I think I still would have done it. Dancers are perfectionists, and that's what keeps us going and growing.
Misty Copeland
#26. It takes a lot of money to be a part of the ballet world. Both the training and the supplies are expensive, the shoes, the leotards and the tights.
Misty Copeland
#27. Even if I weren't learning new roles and getting the opportunity to be coached by incredible people, I still think I would be so excited to have an opportunity to continue to push myself and grow, as an artist.
Misty Copeland
#28. Be strong, be fearless, be beautiful. And believe that anything is possible when you have the right people there to support you.
Misty Copeland
#29. I don't feel like my life is that of a superstar! Every day I wake up, I take the train, I go to my ballet class. My everyday life is pretty normal.
Misty Copeland
#30. I feel like with 'On the Town,' it was the perfect production and the perfect opportunity.
Misty Copeland
#31. I think body-image issues are not just a dancer thing. I think we're much more in tune and aware because the body is our instrument and art, and we stare at ourselves in a mirror all day, but I feel like it's something that every woman experiences and every girl experiences.
Misty Copeland
#32. If the rhythm or beat of the music changes with a live orchestra, you have to think on your feet. If you feel like you are not on your leg, you have to make a decision to make it look as though nothing is going wrong.
Misty Copeland
#33. I know that I'm talented, and I know that I'm not in American Ballet Theater because I'm black - I'm here because I'm a gifted dancer.
Misty Copeland
#34. Barack Obama being President of the United States doesn't mean racism has disappeared. It's all a process, and we have to be aware that the work never ends.
Misty Copeland
#35. Once you become a professional, to get through a ballet like 'Swan Lake' - four acts as the lead, changing character - the perseverance is incredible. It takes a lot to make it through and keep the same energy throughout the entire performance.
Misty Copeland
#36. The woman represents ballet. She is most important, powerful and vital to it. Therefore, she is not "less than" a man. If anything she is "more than" in this field.
Misty Copeland
#38. I don't want to be anything else other than a ballerina. I love what I do outside of my work, but at the end of the day, I have to sacrifice.
Misty Copeland
#39. It's really amazing that I was discovered and that I've been given these great opportunities to travel the world and work with amazing artists. I'm very blessed.
Misty Copeland
#40. I was on a path. I was going to become a principal dancer. I never let my mind rest.
Misty Copeland
#41. When people meet me in person, they're usually surprised at how petite I am because there's this idea that because I'm black, I just look a certain way.
Misty Copeland
#42. I just want to leave a positive memory of setting an example and bringing our youth with us.
Misty Copeland
#43. I wake up every morning, and I go to ballet class no matter what's going on the night before. That's my priority, and that's what makes me feel sane and not removed from the realities of my world.
Misty Copeland
#44. If I'm put in a situation where I am not really sure what's going to happen, it can be overwhelming. I get a bit anxious.
Misty Copeland
#45. I love heels. I'm 5-foot-2, and I like feeling tall.
Misty Copeland
#46. My curves became an integral part of who I am as a dancer, not something I needed to lose to become one.
Misty Copeland
#47. I'm a pescatarian, so I don't eat red meat or pork. So my dinners usually consist of seafood in some way. And maybe cookies after!
Misty Copeland
#48. I'm definitely influenced by the music. We dance to music, and you have to listen to it and phrase your dancing and movement in a certain way to compliment the music. We have to work hand in hand, the dancer and the music.
Misty Copeland
#49. Finding great training, I think, is number one. I did a lot of research and found really great teachers, and it just takes - I took a year off from school and did independent studies so that I could devote all of my time to it. But I think that training is the key, definitely, and it's not a sport.
Misty Copeland
#50. I do think Under Armour is setting a new example for what a ballerina is, and that you can be feminine and an athlete and represent what a woman is at the same time.
Misty Copeland
#51. I'm a classical ballet dancer, and at the end of the day I want to be with American Ballet Theater, performing classical ballets.
Misty Copeland
#52. Decide what you want. Declare it to the world. See yourself winning. And remember that if you are persistent as well as patient, you can get whatever you seek.
Misty Copeland
#53. There are no taking days off. There are no distractions. If I had that, I physically wouldn't be capable of going onstage and performing live theater. It's extremely demanding. I have to be in ballet class every day.
Misty Copeland
#54. There are hundreds of stories I've heard from black women from my generation, generations before me, and the next, that have never been given an opportunity to fulfill their dreams.
Misty Copeland
#55. When I was a little girl, I was incredibly shy. My hope was to blend in, to fit in, to not be noticed in any significant way. I was deeply insecure and unsure of myself.
Misty Copeland
#57. I didn't care how much work it would take, and I didn't see the time invested as a waste or like I was missing out on anything. Ballet became my ultimate passion.
Misty Copeland
#58. It's all so surreal, and I'm living my dream. And you know, principal or not, I'm getting to dance all the roles that I've dreamed of doing.
Misty Copeland
#59. As a child, I had been told that I was exactly what a ballerina should be.
Misty Copeland
#60. I definitely like to be natural and more relaxed and not wear a lot of makeup.
Misty Copeland
#61. Before dance came into my life, I don't really remember having any major goals or dreams of wanting to be anything.
Misty Copeland
#62. But I think the more you eat healthy clean foods the more you create them.
Misty Copeland
#63. I do think that it's a responsibility when there are so few of us as African Americans to kind of get to that place of success in a positive light. We should take a stance and stand for something and use that platform for positivity.
Misty Copeland
#64. Though I have tremendous support from lots of people, there are so many others waiting to tear me down.
Misty Copeland
#65. I don't believe in dieting, I don't believe in having certain moments in your life where you're healthy and then moments when you're like, "I'm going to eat whatever I want." It's just finding what works for your body and always eating healthy.
Misty Copeland
#66. I think American Ballet Theatre is setting that standard now for classical ballet, that you can dream big, and it doesn't matter what you look like, where you come from, what your background is.
Misty Copeland
#67. A young girl reached out to me to be her mentor one day, which I didn't really know anything about. What I did remember was what it was to be alone as an African-American dancer in the ballet world and wanting to connect with someone who looks like me.
Misty Copeland
#68. You have to be the one promoting yourself. If you don't think that you're worthy, you're never going to make it.
Misty Copeland
#69. I grew up poor in San Pedro, California, sleeping on the floor of shady motels with my five siblings and not always sure when or where I'd get my next meal.
Misty Copeland
#70. I never knew I wanted to become a ballerina. I was discovered at the age of 13. I had a love for movement even though I had no exposure to dance other than what I saw in music videos, like hip-hop music videos. But I knew that I loved moving.
Misty Copeland
#71. I was the first person in my family who was ever interested in dance, or fine art of any kind for that matter - I came from a very humble beginning in San Pedro, California.
Misty Copeland
#72. It's going to take a while before we see a real shift in the students and the dancers that are going into professional companies because it takes so many years of training, but I do think that there's a new crop of dancers, of minority dancers that are entering into the ballet world.
Misty Copeland
#74. Going on stage and transcending the audience and becoming this otherworldly thing makes you a dancer. It's not so black and white.
Misty Copeland
#75. The classical ballet world is so exclusive and small, and a lot of people don't know about it.
Misty Copeland
#76. I was seventeen when I moved to New York. I was nineteen when I joined the main company. I was going through a lot. Just becoming an adult and just wanting to fit in, be accepted, and be in common with the other dancers.
Misty Copeland
#77. Just to get into a company like ABT is a dream come true, but to have all of these opportunities on top of it, I don't think it will hit me until I'm 70. I'll be like, "Oh, my god, remember that amazing life you had?" It's an incredible honor to be a part of something like ABT.
Misty Copeland
#78. Success is not easy and I think everyone should know that hard work and perseverance and being open to giving back are so much more powerful than stepping all over people to get to the top.
Misty Copeland
#79. Meeting Raven Wilkinson and having her as a mentor, it was that kind of support from the generations that came before me that helped to lift me up and give me the confidence to then be able to give back and bring other minorities with me on this journey.
Misty Copeland
#80. You can dream big and it doesn't matter what you look like, where you come from.
Misty Copeland
#81. I think I'm pretty laid back. I like cooking, being at home, and going to concerts. And I love to shop!
Misty Copeland
#82. I think anything that affects me in my personal life is going to help me be a better artist on stage.
Misty Copeland
#83. To be empathetic to everyone around you, I think, is such a powerful thing to hold.
Misty Copeland
#84. I just try to approach every opportunity on stage, as if it's my first time and my last time.
Misty Copeland
#85. What you put into your body is just as important as how hard you dance. I believe with the right training and an understanding of how to take care of your body, you can mold it to be whatever you want it to be.
Misty Copeland
#86. Whenever there was chaos in my house, whether it was arguing, being in a cramped space with all of us kids and screaming, I found an empty space where I could just put music on and move.
Misty Copeland
#87. I believe that I definitely developed into a refined and graceful woman due to ballet. It has shaped me in every way.
Misty Copeland
#88. I know that I'll forever be involved in ballet. This is where my life was meant to be, and I don't see myself straying completely away, ever.
Misty Copeland
#89. I feel like I represent every young dancer, and even non-dancer, who felt they were not accepted by the ballet world. I'd like to think that they can see themselves in me.
Misty Copeland
#90. Perseverance has always just been something that was in me. And it was a tool that came in very handy as a ballerina.
Misty Copeland
#91. I feel like going to class every morning is so humbling. You're always working to improve, and you're always being critiqued on your next performance. It's not about what you've done. There's always room to grow.
Misty Copeland
#92. Physical fears change and shift depending on the role and depending on the mindset I'm in.
Misty Copeland
#93. My goal has always been to be a principal dancer with ABT.
Misty Copeland
#94. Ballet found me. I was discovered by a teacher in middle school. I always danced, my whole life. I never had any training, never was exposed to seeing dance, but I always had something inside of me.
Misty Copeland
#95. When I was dancing, I felt in control and happy. I'm a Virgo, so I really like to be in control.
Misty Copeland
#96. My childhood is a part of my story, and it's why I'm who I am today and why my career is what it is.
Misty Copeland
#97. There are muscles that we have in our feet that most human beings don't even know that we have. The strength that we have is so detailed.
Misty Copeland
#98. Being the only African American at this level in American Ballet Theater, I feel like people are looking at me, and it's my responsibility for me to do whatever I can to provide these opportunities in communities to be able to educate them.
Misty Copeland
#99. I've always approached my career and my life, you know, one day at a time, as if this was the last day that I'm going, because you never know as an athlete and as a dancer. You never know what can happen today, tomorrow.
Misty Copeland
#100. It's a European art form, and you're used to seeing a certain type of person as a ballerina. And I don't look like a lot of the girls around me.
Misty Copeland
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