I was told I was the wrong colour to be a swan
Black ballerina Julie Felix says she left the UK in the 1970s after she was excluded from a ballet company because of the colour of her skin. She became a ballet star in New York.
Growing up in London, Julie Felix always dreamed of dancing on the city's most famous stages, but she says she ended up leaving the UK in the 1970s after a ballet company excluded her because of the colour of her skin. Instead, she became a star in the United States with the prestigious Dance Theatre of Harlem, the first classical ballet company to focus on black dancers. Under the tutelage of the great African-American dancer Arthur Mitchell, Julie travelled the world performing for the likes of the singer Prince, Pavarotti and President Ronald Reagan. A book has been written about Julie's life called Brickbats and Tutus.
American environmentalist Molly Burhans calls herself a "park ranger nun". A devout Catholic, she's also a ground-breaking cartographer who's mapped all the land holdings of the Catholic Church so that they can be used for environmental and social justice purposes.
Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com
Picture: A montage of photographs from Julie's dancing career
Credit: Courtesy of Julie Felix
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- Thu 15 Apr 2021 11:06GMTΒι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ World Service
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