Misty Copeland Takes Her Final Bow At American Ballet Theatre After 24 Years
Misty Copeland dazzled Lincoln Center with grace and grit Wednesday evening (October 22) as she delivered her remaining efficiency for American Ballet Theatre, closing a 24-year chapter that reshaped the face of classical dance.
The Copeland farewell unfolded throughout ABT’s Fall Gala on the David H. Koch Theater, the place the 43-year-old icon took her final bow in her decade-long stint as the corporate’s first Black feminine principal dancer.
The night was stuffed with tributes, ovations and a crowd that spanned generations and backgrounds—proof of her far-reaching affect.
Oprah Winfrey and Debbie Allen honored Copeland with emotional speeches, with Winfrey declaring she “didn’t just perform ballet” however “changed it.”
The program featured three performances that showcased Copeland’s vary. She opened with the balcony pas de deux from “Romeo and Juliet” alongside Calvin Royal III, ABT’s first Black male principal in over 20 years.
They adopted with Kyle Abraham’s “Wrecka Stow,” a up to date duet, earlier than she closed the evening with Twyla Tharp’s “Sinatra Suite” alongside longtime associate Herman Cornejo.
The most private second got here after the ultimate curtain, when Copeland’s 3-year-old son Jackson walked onstage in a tuxedo and hugged her as gold confetti fell from the rafters.
The gesture spotlighted the five-year break she took from ABT to boost him with husband Olu Evans.
What a phenomenal cap off to a historic tenure with the American Ballet Theater. Misty. Copeland !!! Deserving of each flower.
Her son popping out to provide her a bouquet is so rattling treasured 😭 how lovely ! pic.twitter.com/ou7PX0PHch
— CP (@CPCatastrophe) October 23, 2025
Born in Kansas City and raised in San Pedro, California, Copeland’s highway to ballet stardom was something however conventional. She started dancing at 13 whereas residing in a motel along with her mom and siblings.
Despite the late begin, she earned scholarships to the San Francisco Ballet School and later joined ABT’s corps de ballet in 2001.
When Misty Copeland was a teen, she, her 5 siblings, and their mom have been residing in two rooms at a motel in Gardena, California. Copeland would follow ballet on the railing outdoors their rooms, imagining it as her non-public studio. She hadn’t been again in almost 20 years —… pic.twitter.com/o4V76735J1
— 60 Minutes (@60Minutes) October 22, 2025
Her 2015 promotion to principal dancer got here not with a quiet memo however a press convention, a transfer that mirrored her superstar standing.
It adopted her acclaimed debut in “Swan Lake” on the Metropolitan Opera House, which drew a extra numerous viewers than the corporate had ever seen.
Since launching the Misty Copeland Foundation in 2022, she has targeted on increasing entry to bop training for kids of shade by her “Be Bold” afterschool program.
The initiative goals to take away limitations which have lengthy stored ballet out of attain for a lot of underserved communities.
Copeland’s publishing work additionally continues. Her second installment of the “Bunheads” kids’s ebook collection dropped in September, and her memoir “The Wind at My Back” stays a staple in conversations about inclusion within the arts.
Her retirement leaves ABT with out a Black feminine principal dancer for the primary time since 2015. Copeland known as the scenario “concerning” however expressed hope that her basis will gas long-term change.
“There’s only so much that visual representation can do,” she advised The Associated Press in June. “I feel like it’s the perfect timing for me to be stepping into a new role, and hopefully still shaping and shifting the ballet world and culture.”
The evening ended with the standard ballet send-off—bouquets from colleagues, mentors and family members. Copeland curated a lot of the gala herself, guaranteeing her remaining efficiency mirrored her imaginative and prescient and legacy.
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