Ballerina Misty Copeland, who made history when she became the first black female principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre last summer, now has her own Barbie doll. The doll wears a costume similar to Copeland's for her Firebird role.
"My goal has always been to be a principal dancer with ABT," Copeland told NPR back in 2014. She has accomplished that goal — and in a video about the new doll that was released Monday, she says she played with Barbie dolls until she was 13, the same year she started ballet.
"I was a very shy girl," she says, adding that Barbie dolls gave her a way to dream — because, Copeland says, "Barbie can transform into anything."
The doll is part of Barbie's Sheroes program that honors female heroes who break boundaries, a line of toys modeled on other famous women, from Ava DuVernay and Emmy Rossum to Kristin Chenoweth and Eva Chen.
Lisa McKnight, Barbie's general manager and senior vice president, says:
"As a brand, we want to honor women, like Misty, who are inspiring the next generation of girls to live out their dreams. We know role play often leads to real 'play' in life and we're thrilled to celebrate Misty with her very own doll."
Dressed in a red bodysuit, the Misty Copeland Barbie Doll includes a tulle headpiece and ballet shoes. It retails for $29.95 — but shortly after it was released, it was only available for pre-order on the Barbie Collection website.
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