now on bbc news, influential with katty kay: misty copeland.isty copeland made history as the first black woman to become a principal dancer at the prestigious american ballet theatre. we had the absolute thrill of meeting her onstage at lincoln centre in new york. hi! hi. i'm katty. thank you so... it's so...! oh, my god. i'm so happy. so lovely to meet you. does everybody who meets you who used to do ballet stand automatically in first position? 0h! is that like a giveaway? and so you have. so i have. and i've been doing it... you know what's weird, preparing for... i find myself all day standing in first position again. it's been so many years. makes you stand up straight. it's so good for you. no, i... thank you for doing this. i'm so thrilled. i'm happy, so am i? i actually when i was about 13, i applied to the royal ballet school in london and i didn't get in, which was just as well, because i'd have been way in the back stage of the corps de ballet, kind of ideally out of the set. but i've wanted to meet you for so long... oh, wow. ..so

now on bbc news, influential with katty kay: misty copeland. copeland made history as the first black woman to become a principal dancer at the prestigious american ballet theatre. we had the absolute thrill of meeting her onstage at lincoln center in new york. hi! hi. i'm katty. thank you so... it's so...! oh, my god. i'm so happy. so lovely to meet you. does everybody who meets you who used to do ballet stand automatically in first position? 0h! is that like a giveaway? and so you have. so i have. and i've been doing it... you know what's weird, preparing for... i find myself all day standing in first position again. it's been so many years. makes you stand up straight. it's so good for you. no, i... thank you for doing this. i'm so thrilled. i'm happy, so am i. i actually when i was about 13, i applied to the royal ballet school in london and i didn't get in, which was just as well, because i'd have been way in the back stage of the corps de ballet, kind of ideally out of the set. but i've wanted to meet you for so long... oh, wow. ..so that

would it be harder if you had darker skin, would you be... ..misty copeland ? be harder. i mean, there are so many dancers that have the talent. this is not an issue of not being able to find talented black and brown dancers. this is an issue of not having the support, not having the access or opportunity and not being... ..not being seen as equal. all the girls put on powder, but you're being asked to put on the same colour powder, pancake. white. and then that's when i start to think, like, what's going on here? do they want me to look like myself? or do... do they want me to be an individual and still be able to take on this character? but as myself in my brown skin and that's who i am. like i said, it's a lot easier for a lighter skin... ..black woman, i want to say in particular, woman, because it's a different journey for black men, to kind of blend in with the...with the company. and then that's another battle that we have to face, whether or not we want to colour our skin. you literally said, hold on, why am i putting on white make—up? yeah, i mean, erm

would it be harder if you had darker skin, would you be... ..misty copeland ? be harder. i mean, there are so many dancers that have the talent. this is not an issue of not being able to find talented black and brown dancers. this is an issue of not having the support, not having the access or opportunity and not being... ..not being seen as equal. all the girls put on powder, but you're being asked to put on the same colour powder, pancake. white. and then that's when i start to think, like, what's going on here? do they want me to look like myself? or do... do they want me to be an individual and still be able to take on this character? but as myself in my brown skin and that's who i am? like i said, it's a lot easier for a lighter skin... ..black woman i want to say in particular, woman, because it's a different journey for black men, to kind of blend in with the...with the company. and then that's another battle that we have to face, whether or not we want to colour our skin. you literally said, hold on, why am i putting on white make—up? yeah, i mean, erm.

now on bbc news, influential with katty kay: misty copeland.olute thrill of meeting her onstage at lincoln centre in new york. hi!

misty copeland made history as the first black woman

misty copeland made history as the first black woman to become a principal dancer at the prestigious. it's so...! oh, my god. i'm so happy. so lovely to meet you. does everybody who meets you who used to do ballet stand automatically in first position? 0h! is that like a giveaway? and so you have. so i have. and i've been doing it... you know what's weird, preparing for... i find myself all day standing in first position again. it's been so many years. makes you stand up straight. it's so good for you. no, i... thank you for doing this. i'm so thrilled. i'm happy, so am i. i actually when i was about 13, i applied to the royal ballet school in london and i didn't get in, which was just as well,

misty copeland made history as the first black woman to become a principal dancer at the prestigious