Misty Copeland is coming back to Baltimore.
The iconic ballerina, known to most as the first-ever African-American principal dancer in the American Ballet Theater, has just published her new health and fitness book, “Ballerina Body: Dancing and Eating Your Way to a Leaner, Stronger, and more Graceful You.”
On Wednesday, March 22, she’ll be talking about it onstage with dancer and actress Maria Broom (of HBO’s “The Wire” and “The Corner”) at The Brown Center at MICA. The talk begins at 7 p.m.
This is Copeland’s third book capitalizing on her extraordinary career in ballet. She also wrote “Firebird,” a children’s book published in September 2014, and “Life in Motion,” a New York Times best-selling memoir published in December 2014.
The event is a partnership between the art school and Enoch Pratt Free Library. This is the third time the library system has brought in Copeland to speak about her writing; she also came to the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in 2015 and the library’s downtown branch in 2014.
Unfortunately, the event set for next week has already sold out to the public, according to a release from Enoch Pratt.
Copeland recently made headlines in Baltimore for other reasons. As part of a lineup of world-class athletes paid to endorse South Baltimore-based Under Armour, she joined actor and wrestler Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry in condemning CEO Kevin Plank’s supportive rhetoric for President Donald Trump from his early February appearance on CNBC.
“Those of you who have supported and followed my career know that the one topic I’ve never backed away from speaking openly about is the importance of diversity and inclusion,” she said in an Instagram post during the fallout. “It is imperative to me that my partners and sponsors share this belief.”
(Plank soon after penned an open letter to Baltimore to say he and his company do appreciate diversity.)
Copeland’s speaking engagement is part of Enoch Pratt’s Writers LIVE! series. Other authors set to come speak in Baltimore include novelist Roxane Gay on March 23, historian Daniel Sharfstein on April 5 and journalist D. Watkins on April 20.
