Ballerina Michaela Mabinty DePrince, who performed with Beyoncé and was seen by many as a trailblazer, has died at the age of 29.
A spokesperson announced her death on her personal Instagram page and in a statement her family said she was an “unforgettable inspiration to everyone who knew her or heard her story”.
The cause of death has not been given.
DePrince made a remarkable journey from suffering as an orphan in war-torn Sierra Leone to numerous accolades in the world of international dance.
Her family said her death had been “sudden”, adding: “Michaela touched so many lives across the world, including ours.”
Tributes have been pouring in, including from others in the ballet community.
That’s just awful. Anyone who dies that young has a tragic death, but it’s so much more tragic when you achieve the level of accomplishment she did.
Ballet does wreck your body though. I wonder if that contributed to whatever ended up causing her death.
That probably wrecks a body, too.
I just watched a video where she was talking about being stabbed in the belly with a machete by a child soldier right after her pregnant teacher was cut open in front of her by soldiers who wanted to know if the teacher’s baby was a girl or a boy.
Wow. That’s so tragic, on every level, for both humans. I watched a documentary on the making of child soldiers, they get them hooked on drugs, so they can live with the horrors, much like human traffickers do their victims.
Its so sad. She was a bright shining light.