Being one of the few African American women to make it to this level in a classical ballet company, the level of American Ballet Theatre, takes a lot of perseverance.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
Once you become a professional, to get through a ballet like 'Swan Lake' - four acts as the lead, changing character - the perseverance is incredible. It takes a lot to make it through and keep the same energy throughout the entire performance.
There's only a certain amount of space in every ballet company. You're basically on a team. You want to succeed as a group but all want to have the same roles.
I have been very lucky to work in so many new ballets, but that is what a dancer's work is.
Being the only African American at this level in American Ballet Theater, I feel like people are looking at me, and it's my responsibility for me to do whatever I can to provide these opportunities in communities to be able to educate them.
At least in my performances, the audience has become so diverse in a way that I don't think ballet has ever experienced.
I want to bring awareness to the lack of diversity in ballet, and feel like that's a large part of my purpose.
You realize you can get good at something, even though ballet almost felt like you could never be good enough. No matter how hard you worked, it was so hard to be a great dancer.
I've never danced professionally as a ballet dancer, but all of my training is ballet, and I am a Fosse dancer.
Ballet is an incredibly difficult, beautiful art form that takes a lot of training, a lot of time, and a lot of hard work.
I think American Ballet Theatre is setting that standard now for classical ballet, that you can dream big, and it doesn't matter what you look like, where you come from, what your background is.