Sierra Leonean ballerina Michaela Mabinty DePrince, who starred in the TV show "Dancing with the Stars" and Beyonce's "Lemonade" music video album, died on Friday at 29, her family said.
The news of her death was announced on her personal Instagram page and then confirmed by her family in a joint statement on Facebook.
No cause of death was given.
"It is with profound sadness we announce the sudden passing of our beautiful sister, Michaela Mabinty DePrince. Michaela touched so many lives across the world, including ours. She was an unforgettable inspiration to everyone who knew her or heard her story,” her family said.
Several members of the ballet community mourned DePrince, including American ballerina Misty Copeland, who posted a video of DePrince dancing along with an excerpt about DePrince from Copeland’s book called "Black Ballerinas.”
"Despite being told the 'world wasn’t ready for Black ballerinas' or that 'Black ballerinas weren’t worth investing in,' she remained determined, focused and began making big strides,” Copeland wrote.
DePrince was born Mabinty Bangura in Kenema, Sierra Leone, on Jan. 6, 1995, and was brought to an orphanage at three by her uncle during the civil war.
In her 2014 book "Taking Flight: From War Orphan to Star Ballerina,” she recounted how she was isolated from the other children due to vitiligo, a skin pigmentation condition and how she suffered from malnourishment.
She was adopted in 1999 at four by New Jersey couple Elaine and Charles DePrince, who enrolled her in ballet classes. Aged 14, DePrince was awarded a scholarship to study ballet at the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School.
She rose to fame after starring in the documentary "First Position" in 2011 and performed across the globe, joining the acclaimed Boston Ballet as a second soloist while also serving as a motivational speaker.
