Misty Copeland on Her Style Evolution Post-Motherhood and the Power of Dance

"I dress more conservatively, but I still like to have a little bit of a funkiness to it."

Leather in 80-degree weather? Trust us; it works. Just look to famed ballet dancer Misty Copeland, who stepped out for the BAAND Together Dance Festival at Lincoln Center on Tuesday in a dark blue Chanel leather blouse with ruched sleeves and matching shorts set. She accessorized with a ladylike purse and matching pointed-toe heels also designed by the French fashion house. The look—feminine with an edge—embodied the duality of dance itself: tough and graceful at the same time.

"I feel like I've had so many inspirations and rebirths of what I feel confident in," Copeland told InStyle about why she chose her outfit. "After becoming a mother, I feel like I dress a little more conservatively, but I still like to have a little bit of a funkiness to it."

Dualism was the recurring theme of the night. BAAND, which is made possible by support from Chanel, brings together New York City's five premiere dance organizations—Ballet Hispanico, American Ballet Theatre (where Copeland is a principal dancer), Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York City Ballet, and Dance Theatre of Harlem—for a week of performances like no other. At the event (now in its fourth year), each group performs a repertory favorite on the same stage. Tickets are pay-what-you-wish in an effort to make the arts more accessible.

All five dance companies share a foundation in classical ballet, but they diverge in their specific expressions and styles. "What's so special and amazing is that they all have their own unique essence about them," said Copeland. "At the core is this technique and language of ballet, but they all have a unique twist on their language. It's like having a different accent."

"To see each of these companies side by side, it just shows the power of movement, the power of the language of dance," Copeland continued. "That they can each have their own identity that is influenced by different cultures and different parts of the world, different body types, different music. That, to me, is showing us the evolution of what dance and ballet can be."

Copeland, though she hasn't performed at the annual showcase in several years, is similarly pushing the dance world's evolution forward. Through her eponymous foundation and its signature program, Be Bold, she offers children in the Bronx and Harlem free afterschool ballet classes. She also working on the second installment of her Bunheads picture book series and a variety of film and television projects through her production company, Life in Motion Pictures, which she cofounded with Leyla Fayyaz.

"It's all just continuing the same mission of everything that I've been passionate about throughout my career," Copeland said, "bringing ballet and dance to as many people as possible."

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