Theresa Ruth Howard, Founder of Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet | Pushing Over the Box

In 2015, around the time Misty Copeland was promoted to principal at American Ballet Theatre, Theresa Ruth Howard wrote an article highlighting the long history of Black ballerinas who came before her: "The Misty-rious Case of the Vanishing Ballerinas of Color: Where Have All the Others Gone?" At the bottom, she asked readers to name every Black ballerina they knew in the comments. The response became the Roll Call — and the seed of what is now Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet.In this episode of Pushing Over the Box, Jasmine Jain sits down with Theresa Ruth Howard — former dancer with Dance Theatre of Harlem and Armitage Gone Dance, longtime ballet educator, writer, and curator, and founder of Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet (MoBBallet), a digital archive dedicated to preserving the stories of Black ballet artists. They talk about being discovered by Philadanco founder Joan Myers Brown at age three, seeing Dance Theatre of Harlem perform at eight years old and, for the first time, watching dancers who looked like her doing what she loved, the article that changed the conversation around race in ballet, and the advice she'd give her own 13-year-old self about trusting that it will all eventually make sense.TIMESTAMPS: [08:54] The Article That Started Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet [05:39] Seeing Dance Theatre of Harlem for the First Time at Age 8[17:54] Advice to Her 13-Year-Old Self — "The Universe Will Give You a Pencil"ABOUT THE GUEST: Theresa Ruth Howard is a former dancer with Dance Theatre of Harlem and Armitage Gone Dance, and a longtime ballet educator, writer, and curator. She is the founder of Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet (MoBBallet), a digital archive and platform dedicated to preserving and sharing the stories of Black ballet artists, and a contributing writer for Dance Magazine. She trained at Philadanco under founder Joan Myers Brown before continuing at Pennsylvania Ballet.ABOUT PUSHING OVER THE BOX: Pushing Over the Box is a ballet podcast about the dancer's mindset, hosted by young dancer Jasmine Jain. Through interviews with leading ballet professionals, the podcast explores discipline, artistry, injury, resilience, and what it takes to pursue excellence.CONNECT: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pushingoverthebox/ Website: https://pushingoverthebox.com Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1zHqK394AYtUjYxbB9FNZ1Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pushing-over-the-box/id1847970742#ballet #balletpodcast #balletmindset #dancepodcast #theresaruthhoward #mobballet #dancetheatreofharlem #blackballerinas #balletinterview #ballethistoryTopics discussed: Theresa Ruth Howard interview, Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Black ballerinas history, representation in ballet, Misty Copeland, Philadanco, advice for young dancersGuest: Theresa Ruth Howard — Founder, Memoirs of Blacks in Ballet (MoBBallet)Pushing Over the Box is a ballet podcast about the dancer's mindset. Listen at pushingoverthebox.com