Ballerina Michaela DePrince, who danced for Beyoncé, dies at age 29
Sierra Leonean ballerina Michaela Mabinty DePrince, who starred in TV show "Dancing with the Stars" and Beyonce's "Lemonade" music video album, died on Friday at the age of 29, her family said.
DePrince's family confirmed the news of her passing on social media, writing in a Friday post they were making the announcement with "profound sadness." DePrince's death was "sudden," but other details surrounding the circumstances of her death were not immediately available, according to the post.
"The family thanks you for their privacy as they navigate this very difficult time. Services will be private," according to the post.
Decades before DePrince became a world-renowned ballerina, she was living at an orphanage in Sierra Leone, hoping to be adopted, and she was.
Born in Kenema, Sierra Leone, in 1995, DePrince was sent to an orphanage at the age of three after both of her parents died during the civil war.
She has spoken in the past about how she was seen as a "devil's child" in the orphanage because she suffered from vitiligo, a condition in which patches of skin lose pigmentation.
But she was adopted aged four by an American couple and moved to New Jersey. Her adoptive mother quickly noticed her obsession with ballet and enrolled her in classes.
She rose to fame after graduating from high school and made history as the youngest principal dancer at the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
She was raised by the DePrince family in New Jersey, where she began to take dance classes. DePrince competed and by age 14, won a prestigious scholarship to attend the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School in New York City, a pre-professional ballet training program at the American Ballet Theatre, Glamour reported.
DePrince starred in "First Position," a 2011 documentary following six young dancers. She also released two books about her life "Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina" and "Ballerina Dreams."
Several members of the ballet community mourned DePrince, including American ballerina Misty Copeland who posted on social media a video of DePrince dancing along with an excerpt about DePrince from Copeland’s book called “Black Ballerinas.”
“Despite being told the 'world wasn’t ready for Black ballerinas' or that 'Black ballerinas weren’t worth investing in,' she remained determined, focused, and began making big strides,” Copeland wrote.
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