Michaela Deprince Research Paper

“Hardship adds to the strength of the people and artists we become. Michaela is nothing short of a miracle, born to be a ballerina.”-Misty Copeland. The book “Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina,” written by Michaela DePrince is a life changing autobiography. Michaela started out with a rough early childhood and turned it into a life long dream that came true. Throughout this book, readers get to join Michaela DePrince not only grow up has a kid, but as a beautiful, educated dancer It all started in Sierra Leonean, Africa. Born as Mabinty Bangura. She was entered into an orphanage by her uncle soon after Michaela tragically lost both her parents. While in the orphanage, the children were treated disrespectfully especially …show more content…
Michaelas new family consisted of her mom, dad, and her three brothers Adam, Teddy, and Erik. They lived in a two story home in South Jersey, that had many features that the girls enjoyed such as the giant piano in the living room and the inground pool in the backyard. Once settled in, Michaela and Mia signed up for ballet lessons. Watching and dancing along to a tape of the Nutcracker was one of their favorite things to do, so there was no hesitation when their mom signed them up. At first Mia loved it, but Michaela was not pleases with the level of difficulty that was being tought. A couple classes at different companies later and Michaela finally found the perfect studio, The Rock School for Dance. Along with ballet, the girls also took piano and swimming lessons, but as time passed, Michaela and Mia's dance schedule got longer and they weren't able to do the extra activities. Every December, The Rock School for Dance hosted a showcase at the Academy of Music. There, they performed a ballet routine with all the levels combined. Because of her great stage presence and level of ability, Michaela was recognized by other parents and