Hope In a Ballet Shoe

Description

Before becoming an internationally recognised ballet dancer, Michaela DePrince faced extraordinary challenges as a young girl growing up during the civil war in Sierra Leone. After losing her parents, she was placed in an orphanage, where she encountered hardship and discrimination. But Michaela discovered something that captured her imagination: a photograph of a ballerina dancing on the cover of a magazine. To her, the image represented something she desperately wanted—a life beyond the circumstances she was living through.

That image helped inspire a dream. After being adopted and moving to the United States, Michaela began pursuing ballet seriously. The journey was far from easy. She faced prejudice, financial and personal challenges, and the demanding discipline required to become a professional dancer. Yet she continued working towards her goal.