2015 is shaping up to be the year of Misty Copeland.
In addition to becoming the first black principal ballerina at the prestigious American Ballet Theatre this past June, the dancer also made her Broadway debut last night in On the Town.
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Copeland is stepping in for Georgina Pazcoguin, playing Ivy Smith in the show's latest Broadway iteration. The musical focuses on three sailors on leave in New York City during World War II, who try to track down the elusive woman on the Miss Turnstiles posters decorating the city's train stations (Copeland).
[img src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/misty-copeland2-640x360.jpg" caption="Misty Copeland at the curtain call for "On The Town" on Aug. 25, 2015, in New York." credit="Charles Sykes/Invision/AP" alt=""]
[img src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/misty-copeland3-640x360.jpg" caption="Misty Copeland at the curtain call for "On The Town" on Aug. 25, 2015, in New York." credit="Charles Sykes/Invision/AP" alt=""]
[img src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/misty-copeland4-640x360.jpg" caption="Misty Copeland at the curtain call for "On The Town" on Aug. 25, 2015." credit="Charles Sykes/Invision/AP" alt=""]
[img src="http://admin.mashable.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/misty-copeland5-640x360.jpg" caption="Misty Copeland at the curtain call for "On The Town" on Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2015, in New York." credit="Charles Sykes/Invision/AP" alt=""]
Copeland moved straight from the American Ballet Theatre's spring 2015 season to training for her role in the musical.
"We usually get about a two-month break in the summer, so I thought if there's a time to dive into a new challenge, and it's something that I think is going to further me in my ballet career, which comes first and foremost for me, this is definitely that opportunity and now's the time now that ABT's off," she told CBS This Morning after stepping into rehearsals.
"I went straight into rehearsals after, so my phone was just exploding. People were like, 'Answer my calls,' and I'm like, 'I'm dancing.'"
It's hard to find time to reply to texts when you're busy breaking boundaries.
If her On the Town co-star Jackie Hoffman's tweets are anything to go by, all that prep paid off.
Every move Misty Copeland makes gets 4 min. of applause. This show just got a whole lot longer #blackballerinalivesmatter— Jackie Hoffman (@JackieHoffman16) August 25, 2015
Should I put" tried to dance next to Misty Copeland while she was actually dancing" under special skills on my résumé— Jackie Hoffman (@JackieHoffman16) August 26, 2015
Anyone hoping to catch Copeland On the Town, should hurry -- though the revival opened on Broadway over a year ago, Copeland is joining the tail-end of its run, and will only appear in 12 performances.
On the Town is playing at the Lyric Theatre in New York City until September 6, 2015.