Michaela Mabinty DePrince, a renowned ballerina born during the civil war in Sierra Leone and featured in Beyoncé’s Lemonade visual album, has passed away at the age of 29, according to an announcement on her official Instagram page.
“Her life was a testament to grace, purpose, and resilience. Her unwavering dedication to her art, her humanitarian efforts, and her bravery in overcoming unimaginable challenges will forever be an inspiration to us all,” the post read.
“She was a beacon of hope for so many, proving that even in the darkest circumstances, beauty and greatness can emerge.”
No cause of death has been disclosed. Her sister Mia expressed feelings of “shock and deep sadness.”
DePrince made history as the youngest principal dancer at the Dance Theatre of Harlem and later performed with the Dutch National Ballet and Boston Ballet, where she served as a second soloist.
Her talent reached a broader audience with her appearance in Lemonade, Beyoncé’s acclaimed visual album.
DePrince shared in an interview that she initially thought it was a joke when she learned the singer wanted her for the project. Beyoncé personally told DePrince it was an “honor” to have her involved.
DePrince’s early life was marked by the devastation of Sierra Leone’s civil war. After losing both of her parents—her father was killed by rebels, and her mother died of starvation—she was sent to an orphanage.
There, she was labeled “the devil’s child” and mistreated due to her vitiligo, a skin condition that causes patches of lightened skin.
She also endured harrowing experiences, including witnessing the murder of one of her teachers by rebels and being stabbed by a young boy while trying to intervene.
“I still have a scar from it, and I blacked out afterward—I have no idea how I survived; it was awful,” DePrince recounted in a 2012 interview.
Born Mabinty Bangura, DePrince first glimpsed the world of ballet when she saw a ballerina on the cover of a magazine outside her orphanage at the age of three.
“I was mesmerized by how beautiful she was, how stunning her costume was,” DePrince said. Although she didn’t know what ballet was at the time, she clung to the magazine cover and dreamed of finding the same happiness as the dancer she saw.
Soon after, DePrince was adopted by a New Jersey couple and began her new life in the United States. Her adoptive family supported her passion for ballet and enrolled her in dance classes.
“From the very beginning of our time together in Africa, Michaela (Mabinty) and I would create our own musical theater plays and ballets, acting them out while we slept on shared mats in the orphanage,” her sister Mia, who was also adopted by the same family, wrote in a statement.
DePrince went on to receive a full scholarship to the American Ballet Theater’s summer program at the age of 13 and later secured another scholarship at the Youth America Grand Prix, the world’s largest ballet competition.
Her journey, however, was not without challenges. As a Black dancer in a predominantly white ballet world, DePrince almost quit at age 10 after a teacher said she didn’t want to invest time or money in Black dancers.
But DePrince’s resolve never wavered. “I’m still working to change how people see Black dancers, to show that we can be graceful ballerinas,” she told at age 17.
“Despite being told that the ‘world wasn’t ready for Black ballerinas’ and that ‘Black ballerinas weren’t worth investing in,’ she remained steadfast and began to break barriers,” fellow dancer Misty Copeland wrote in a tribute on social media. “Michaela had so much more to offer,” Copeland added.
In 2014, DePrince co-wrote a memoir with her adoptive mother titled Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina. She also became an ambassador for War Child Holland, advocating for the well-being and mental health of children in war zones.
“This work was her passion,” her family wrote in their statement, asking for donations to the organization in her memory.
