Many people may not know this but I was a ballet dancer as a young girl; I also played the violin. And so in short, I am a huge fan of the arts. When I had the opportunity to see Misty Copeland, I pounced on it. Misty’s name and skill level is synonymous with grace and excellence. Not to mention, Misty is the first African American Principal dancer for the American Ballet Theatre.
Leading up to seeing Misty, I was not sure what I would wear. I did not know if I would wear a very formal dress or something less formal like denim pants with a blouse. What I did know is that I would not wear sweatpants, shorts, or a hoodie as that would be too casual for the occasion. The thing about the ballet is that you always want to dress the part for the dancers to show respect.
These days, many people do not get dressed up to see the arts. When I was growing up, my parents would get full-on dressed up whenever they would see anything related to the arts. I distinctly remember when my parents went to see Fences on Broadway starring Billie Dee Williams; my mom wore a dress with a fur coat and my dad wore a suit.
So leading up to seeing Misty, I honestly had four dresses lined up. I know I made wearing the “right” outfit to the ballet into a production. But Misty was and is worth it. One contender was a black dress I rented from Rent the Runway but when the dress arrived, it was too big. I also bought a hunter green dress that fit like a glove but I decided it looked too much like a prom dress. Ha! I considered wearing a fancy, multi-colored Missoni dress. However, I landed on a black Calvin Klein black dress I bought from Macy’s Department Store. I wore my dress with Vince Camuto black, high-heeled sandals and a Nine West black, python clutch.
The night of the ballet and before showtime, I dined at The Smith, the Lincoln Center location and their food was delicious. Thereafter, I went to the ballet and it did not disappoint. I had a second row seat and witnessing Misty Copeland, live and in color was nothing short of breathtaking. I encourage everyone to see a Misty performance as she is simply phenomenal.
Below I have rounded up dresses suitable for a ballet or any formal event.
