“The power of being able to see yourself represented in different spaces means so much for the growth of a young child, to be able to think they can be anything.”

The two spoke at length about body image and the pressures of being trailblazers for their race in their respective fields. Here are our five favorite quotes. 

Copeland appears in the re-creations for a new Harper’s Bazaar story. 

PBS is premiering the Misty Copeland documentary, ”A Ballerina’s Tale,” tonight (February 8). We talked to Brittani Marie, a former ballerina and the co-founder of Brown Girls Do Ballet, about the importance of Copeland’s success, her own struggles with racism and body image and what it will take to bring more girls of color into the predominantly White ballet world.

The rising star will be the latest to play the ballet-dancing female lead Ivy in the Broadway production of “On the Town.” 

The ballet star is the first African-American woman to become a principal dancer at the American Ballet Theater.