Documentary Misty Copeland

Review of a Documentary

“A Ballerina’s Tale”

Review written by Dan McDonald

 

            I will begin this review with a confession. I am not an avid fan of ballet. Like many of our likes and dislikes that probably has more to do with habits and personal custom than having known an entertainment form and rejected it. I had to tell myself to watch it through Netflix even if the thought of watching a documentary about a ballerina did not appeal to me. I have learned in life that a compelling human story can transform disinterest in a subject to interest. The documentary describing the rise of Misty Copeland to become the first person of color to be the principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater is a compelling story. The documentary also helps one understand that ballet is a physically demanding and rigorous art form.

            The documentary helps you to realize how ballet is an art form with a tradition that often had little room for actors or actresses which were not European. Ballet grew up in places like Italy, France, and Russia; and its stories were often European rooted. Misty Copeland would have to overcome expectations if she was to excel in a profession as white as any remaining in modern America. Eventually she would see herself as an African-American role model, but first she would simply fall in love with dancing.

 

 

            This documentary begins with videos of her earliest performances learning ballet in a humble California setting. We see her move to New York City and begin to train with the American Ballet Theater, one of the three most prestigious ballet companies in the United States. A crisis eventually came as she wondered if she could really move into a full time performer with the American Ballet Theater as she didn’t really fit into the image of ballet dancers. Not only was she a person of color but she also had a muscular and curvy build. For fifty years the ballet world had placed a premium on slim, nearly pre-puberty looking women. She began to doubt that she could ever fit in the world of ballet. At one point in her life during these times of doubt, being told she needed to watch her wait, she would respond to her own doubt by ordering doughnuts and eating a dozen doughnuts at a single sitting. People that believed she possessed a rare stage presence contacted an older black woman to mentor her. The mentor put together a team to encourage the young ballerina to focus on her dance and not to be overwhelmed by her color in a white profession. A team of African-American women who had broken boundaries became a network to give her the needed encouragement to help her through her difficulties. This approach proved a success. She was soon focused, never late for dancing, pursuing the labor needing done to excel.

 

Success is seldom a lone wolf, but someone special with a supporting network

 

            Having found her calling, she began to realize her success was more than her own story. She was a trailblazer, opening a pathway for others to follow. Her big break came when she starred in a performance of the Firebird, a Stravinsky ballet. Her performance received great reviews. But she had pushed herself through pain because she realized many were noticing this person of color rising in the ballet world. She performed through intense pain, as she had stress fractures which would require surgery following the end of her performing in the part. At aged 29, her career seemed potentially over. But modern surgery and a carefully pursued rehabilitation program enabled her to return to ballet. In June of 2015 she was named principal dancer of the American Ballet Theater. She was the first person of color to fill that position in the company’s history, perhaps the first person of color to fill that position for any of the world’s major ballet companies.

            If you don’t know much about ballet, or think you are not attracted to ballet – then that ought to be a reason to watch this documentary. You will realize that ballet requires not only the grace of dancing but also the athleticism of running, jumping, and standing on the toes of one leg for up to five minutes at a time. It is a rigorous way to make someone look graceful. But mostly this is a wonderful compelling story of a human life which found a calling and then found a voice.