One of America’s leading ballet dancers shared her truth on Thursday night, reflecting on how 14 years ago, a teacher applied makeup to lighten her skin before a crucial performance. Nayara Lopes, a principal dancer with the Philadelphia Ballet and originally from Brazil, recounted her journey to the U.S. in 2011 to audition for the esteemed Youth America Grand Prix ballet competition.
While participating in a panel at a YAGP event in New York, Lopes stated: “My teacher, before I went on stage, she told me: ‘This is the chance of your life, everybody has spent a lot of money for you to get here… You have to get something!’” She said, “At 14 years old, that’s a lot of pressure… And she painted me white with her makeup, and she said, ‘This is the best way you’re going to get a chance.”
Misty Copeland, who made history in 2015 as the first Black principal dancer at the American Ballet Theater, was also part of the panel. Lopes reflected on her experience, stating that she “accepted it” at the time. “Now, I think back: How can you normalize this?,” she remarked during the “Classical Ballet Pantomime: The Evolution of Choreography” event at the New York Public Library of the Performing Arts.
“I would do anything to change my life, to help my family — but now, as a dancer, I don’t want to be the dancer that did it because she had makeup on. I want to be the dancer who’s good enough to do it as myself,” she added. Larissa Saveliev, YAGP’s founder and artistic director, told Page Six: “The moment Nayara stepped on stage her talent was obvious. YAGP saw her impeccable technique, strong training, and the artistry in her movement. Her performance spoke for itself and she won the 2011 Grand Prix Award, at YAGP Regionals in South Carolina.”
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