2024-09-14 07:46:28
The ballet world is mourning the loss of dancer Michaela DePrince, a ballerina with the Boston Ballet who also worked with Beyoncé. She was only 29 years old.
Star ballerina Michaela DePrince, who worked with Beyoncé among others, has died at the age of 29. This was announced on social media. “Her life was marked by grace, determination and strength,” reads a post published on her official Instagram page. “Her unwavering commitment to her art, her humanitarian efforts and her courage to overcome unimaginable challenges will inspire us forever.”
The statement also honored the dancer as a “beacon of hope for many, showing that beauty and greatness can rise from even the darkest of places.” No information was given about DePrince’s cause of death.
According to media reports, the dancer’s family also confirmed her death via social media. “Her passion and influence on the world of dance” was enormous, her relatives wrote in the emotional post. “We will miss her and her beautiful smile forever and we know you will too.”
Michaela DePrince was orphaned as a child after her father was killed in the civil war in Sierra Leone and her mother died of illness, she told US magazine “Glamour”. She lived with other orphans before being adopted and moving to the US at the age of 4.
DePrince studied ballet at the “Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School” at the “American Ballet Theatre”. She became known through a role in the documentary “First Position – Ballet is her life” and through her participation in Beyoncé’s album “Lemonade”. She also took part in “Dancing with the Stars”.
She later became a member of the Dance Theatre of Harlem and went to the Netherlands to dance. In 2021, she returned to the USA and performed for the Boston Ballet. She also published her autobiography, Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina.