Black ballerina Michaela Mabinty DePrince has died at 29
Defying the odds as a Black ballerina, the dance world mourns the loss of Michaela Mabinty DePrince.
Michaela Mabinty DePrince, the trailblazing ballerina who exemplified rising above adversity with poise, grace, and tenacity, has taken her final bow. On September 13, representatives from DePrince’s team revealed in a statement posted to Instagram that she had died. She was 29 years old; a cause of death was not reported.
“Rest in Power…With pain in our hearts, we share the loss of star ballerina Michaela Mabinty DePrince, whose artistry touched countless hearts and whose spirit inspired many, leaving an indelible mark on the world of ballet and beyond,” the statement read. “Her life was one defined by grace, purpose, and strength. Her unwavering commitment to her art, her humanitarian efforts, and her courage in overcoming unimaginable challenges will forever inspire us. She stood as a beacon of hope for many, showing that no matter the obstacles, beauty and greatness can rise from the darkest of places.”
Born in Sierra Leone, DePrince lost both of her parents during the country’s civil war when she was three years old. Forced into an orphanage where she was reportedly neglected, abused and bullied, the ballerina said ballet saved her spirit during a period when she felt “helpless.”
“I felt like I didn’t have anything, to have a future or nothing to look forward to,” DePrince said in a 2023 interview. “Then, I found this magazine in the orphanage, and it was a picture of a ballerina. She looked so beautiful and so elegant. And I just wanted to find my own fairy tale.”
When she was ultimately adopted by Elaine and Charles DePrince of New Jersey, DePrince wasted no time showing her adopted mother the photo she had saved from that magazine. By age four, she was enrolled in ballet classes, and after years of training, DePrince eventually transcended the odds to become a professional ballerina.
“There are moments where you feel like I’m not good enough. I had a lot of teachers saying, ‘Well, we don’t really believe in Black ballerinas’ or ‘We think you’re going to end up getting fat with big boobs and big thighs. You should just be a modern dancer.’ There’s a lot of people who didn’t believe in me,” she explained. “I knew I wanted to do this, and [that] this was my passion, and I had to make sure my passion would happen.”
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In addition to being one of few Black professional ballerinas, DePrince was a Black ballerina with vitiligo, a chronic autoimmune disorder that causes areas of the skin to lose pigment.
“I remember my first show. I was terrified because I thought, OK, well, if people could see my spots… that meant I could not become the ballerina I wanted to be,” she told NBC News, explaining how her mother’s confirmation that her spots weren’t noticeable to the audience confirmed that she could be a professional ballerina.
Inspired by her predecessors, including Lauren Anderson and Misty Copeland, the latter of whom included DePrince in her 2022 book “Black Ballerinas,” DePrince made history at 17 by becoming the youngest principal dancer at the Dance Theatre of Harlem. A year later, she joined the Dutch National Ballet in Amsterdam, where she eventually became a soloist. In 2016, Beyoncé tapped DePrince for a solo performance to the song “Freedom” on her visual album “Lemonade.” Also landing appearances in British Vogue and Nike, she continued her ballet career in the United States at the Boston Ballet, which issued its own statement in the wake of her death.
“We’re sending our love and support to the family of Michaela Mabinty DePrince at this time of loss,” the dance company wrote on Instagram. “We were so fortunate to know Mabinty; she was a beautiful person, a wonderful dancer, and she will be greatly missed by us all.”
Beyond her captivating performances, Mabinty DePrince was a humanitarian. As ambassador for War Child Holland, the ballerina advocated for children affected by conflict and violence. She also hosted the Dare to Dream gala, which promoted the well-being and mental health of children living in war zones.
Though her journey was cut short, DePrince’s story lives on through her memoir “Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina,” and her children’s book “Ballet Dreams.”
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