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The Glass Ceiling On The Ballet Floor

Dancers from the Royal Ballet perform a scene from "Song of the Earth" during a dress rehearsal in 2015. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)
Dancers from the Royal Ballet perform a scene from "Song of the Earth" during a dress rehearsal in 2015. (Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images)

When Misty Copeland was promoted to principal dancer of American Ballet Theater this summer, she made headlines as the first female African-American principal in the 75-year history of that company.

But as companies prepare for a new season, ballets’ artistic leadership and choreographers are almost exclusively white and male. And, as Here & Now contributor Sharon Basco reports, that’s not likely to change anytime soon.

Reporter

  • Sharon Basco, journalist, critic and public radio producer.

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