This excessively specific physique has become a sort of “job requirement” for ballerinas. Most are not born with the qualities that are required, meaning that they starve themselves almost to the point of death. These requirements do not make sense because in order for a ballerina to survive 8-hour rehearsal days, she must eat. If she doesn’t, she won’t be able to perform her best, and will in turn not look her best on stage. Weight and body image is something that Copeland, as well as many other ballerinas in the past have struggled with. This was perhaps more of a focus for Copeland, since her body in particular has a more muscular line compared to the classical, thinner lines of traditional ballerinas. She received many rejection letters
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Finally, over the course of five years she was able to strike a healthy balance and do what was right for her body (Copeland 169). “And ABT, seeing how hard I had worked, and how well I was performing, eventually stopped asking me to lengthen. They came to see things my way, that my curves are part of who I am as a dancer, not something that I need to lose to become one” (Copeland 171). Copeland eventually realized that having the perfect “Balanchine body” wasn’t realistic for her, and wasn’t something that she was willing to starve herself for. She learned that taking care of her body ultimately made her feel better, and allowed her to perform at her best. She became one of the first brave enough to break away from the norm, and became so confident in her dancing that she didn’t need to look a certain way. She broke the stigma surrounding dance and eating disorders, and spread the message that dancers come in all shapes and sizes, and that body type should not govern how a dancer is looked upon. Although Misty Copeland has faced a great number of challenges, she found ways to overcome them and shape the world that we know …show more content…
She has had a profound impact on not only the ballet community, but the world as a whole. Struggling with being an underprivileged, non-white dancer herself, she decided to give back and help those in similar situations. She established ABT’s Project Plié, which works to promote ethnic minorities and give them exposure to ballet (Collins). Similarly to how she was introduced to ballet, the project works in conjunction with the Boy’s and Girl’s Club, as well as ballet companies such as Orlando Ballet, Ballet Austin, and Cincinnati Ballet (Collins). Copeland confides,“...something that I fought so hard for throughout the beginning of my career is I didn’t want to pancake my skin a lighter color to fit into the ... ballet. I wanted to be myself. I didn’t want to have to wear makeup that made my nose look thinner. There are just – it’s important I think with this generation of young minorities, children especially, to feel comfortable and confident in their skin” (Time.com). The change brought about by promoting minorities in ballet through efforts such as Project Plié is huge. First off, to the children that Copland is inspiring, the opportunities that she is presenting them with are life altering. She gives them a place to belong in a world where they might not otherwise have that, and serves as a stellar role model for them to look up to. Encouraging racial and ethnic minority children in ballet produces a ripple effect.
Finally, over the course of five years she was able to strike a healthy balance and do what was right for her body (Copeland 169). “And ABT, seeing how hard I had worked, and how well I was performing, eventually stopped asking me to lengthen. They came to see things my way, that my curves are part of who I am as a dancer, not something that I need to lose to become one” (Copeland 171). Copeland eventually realized that having the perfect “Balanchine body” wasn’t realistic for her, and wasn’t something that she was willing to starve herself for. She learned that taking care of her body ultimately made her feel better, and allowed her to perform at her best. She became one of the first brave enough to break away from the norm, and became so confident in her dancing that she didn’t need to look a certain way. She broke the stigma surrounding dance and eating disorders, and spread the message that dancers come in all shapes and sizes, and that body type should not govern how a dancer is looked upon. Although Misty Copeland has faced a great number of challenges, she found ways to overcome them and shape the world that we know …show more content…
She has had a profound impact on not only the ballet community, but the world as a whole. Struggling with being an underprivileged, non-white dancer herself, she decided to give back and help those in similar situations. She established ABT’s Project Plié, which works to promote ethnic minorities and give them exposure to ballet (Collins). Similarly to how she was introduced to ballet, the project works in conjunction with the Boy’s and Girl’s Club, as well as ballet companies such as Orlando Ballet, Ballet Austin, and Cincinnati Ballet (Collins). Copeland confides,“...something that I fought so hard for throughout the beginning of my career is I didn’t want to pancake my skin a lighter color to fit into the ... ballet. I wanted to be myself. I didn’t want to have to wear makeup that made my nose look thinner. There are just – it’s important I think with this generation of young minorities, children especially, to feel comfortable and confident in their skin” (Time.com). The change brought about by promoting minorities in ballet through efforts such as Project Plié is huge. First off, to the children that Copland is inspiring, the opportunities that she is presenting them with are life altering. She gives them a place to belong in a world where they might not otherwise have that, and serves as a stellar role model for them to look up to. Encouraging racial and ethnic minority children in ballet produces a ripple effect.