Ballerina Misty Copeland shows off $3.125m New York apartment

Ballerina Misty Copeland is showing off her $3.125 million New York City apartment, where she lives with her lawyer husband, Olu Evans.

The 37-year-old, who was the first African American woman to be named principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater, purchased the three-bedroom apartment in 2018 and only recently moved in.

In a new video for Architectural Digest, she takes viewers on a tour through her home, showing off a stunning art collection by black artists, her ‘serene’ master bedroom, and a large walk-in closet that was inspired in part by Mariah Carey.

The apartment is one of several that Misty has lived in on the Upper West Side, but she seems to have made this one a permanent home. 

‘It’s the first home that we’ve owned together, so it’s really nice to be able to share our interests and love and bring it into our home,’ she says in the video.

First, she shows off the living room, which has hardwood floors and a matching custom walnut wall cabinet. There are blue velvet sofas and chairs, which she calls  the ‘pops of color’ that bring the room to life. 

‘Something that’s been important to us is just to have a really solid neutral base,’ she explains, adding that it sets a tone to be able to do ‘whatever’ and make it feel ‘elegant and homey.’

For decor, she points out one of several pieces of art spotlighted in her home: a photo shot in Africa by her husband’s cousin, Shane Evans.

‘I think the theme is a lot of artists of color,’ she says.

She also gestures to a piece by the ‘incredible artist’ Nathaniel Mary Quinn hanging on her wall.

Attached to the living room is the dining room, where six white chairs are reflected in a large wall-size mirror and a crystal chandelier hangs above the table. 

‘What’s been important to me is to bring in the elegance, so having chandeliers is, like, a dream,’ she says. ‘I just love the mix of the elegance with the chandelier, and the texture on the mirror, that makes it look so big and open.’

She moves past her husband’s favorite part of the house, a bar he designed, and walks into the kitchen — which has a ‘cool little entryway’ with a tiny wine cellar built in, complete with fridge for her champagne and prosecco.

The kitchen is narrow and done in all white with gold accents, narrow kitchen done all in white with gold accents — and though perhaps small by suburban standards, actually has quite a lot of counter space for Manhattan. 

‘I practically live in here because I’m a really big food lover and I cook a lot, so I just put on music and drink some wine while I’m cooking. It’s one of my favorite rooms,’ she says.

She then moves out into a long hallway, which is painted with a shiny light blue color. 

‘As someone who didn’t come from a lot, in my youth and growing up, I remember Mariah Carey’s [MTV] Cribs, and I remember in her dressing room, she had these, like, candy-coated walls, and it was in this pink color. So that’s what I think of when I think of these walls,’ she says.

Here, she and her husband have hung even more art, including a print from photographer Mark Seliger, a ‘dear, dear friend’ of Misty’s, which shows the hands of modern dancer Merce Cunningham’s hands. 

There’s also Misty’s favorite piece, a huge painting by Dedee Mathieu of a girl blowing bubble gum.

Off the hallways is the guest bathroom with a textured wallpaper, a brass sink, and a work of art by Deborah Roberts. 

The guest bedroom, nearby, also has textured walls, which give it ‘that something special so it’s not just your typical New York City apartment with white walls.’

‘Clearly the star of this room is this amazing work of art,’ she adds, gesturing to a painting by Asuka Anastacia Ogawa  

‘I’m often like, “Can I just sleep in the guest bedroom?” Because it’s so beautiful and also really relaxing,’ Misty says.

The penultimate room on the tour is the master bedroom, which has tons of natural light. 

‘It’s just got a lot of beautiful light dancing eight hours a day, five days a week,’ she says, calling the room ‘serene.’ 

Misty points out the tufted, padded walls — which are great for her because she’s ‘clumsy’ — and more art by Shane Evans and Lorna Simpson.

Finally, the ballerina walks into her dressing room, which is lined with open shelves and closet space where everything, including her enviable shoe collection, is on display.  

The room is also outfitted with a vanity table with a gold chair and white rug, another chandelier, textured champagne-colored walls, an ‘amazing vintage mirror,’ and fresh flowers.

‘It’s like, I think, every girl’s dream. But this was really important for me when we were picking out the home that we wanted to purchase,’ Misty says.

She wanted the room to have an Old Hollywood feel — and also thinks back to Mariah Carey’s Cribs episode when she steps inside.

She says she remembered watching and thinking, ‘Is that something that a little biracial girl that grew up poor could really have?’ 

‘Especially as a black woman, it’s really powerful,’ she adds.

The room also houses her tutus, but Misty notes, ‘I’m not a really girly girl, and I think people would assume, because I’m a ballerina, that I am. 

‘But it is nice to play dress-up and have a place that’s really elegant.’ 

In the new issue of the magazine, Misty says that she hired interior designer Brigette Romanek to work on the space.

‘There are things we just cannot do on our own, and we realized how necessary it was to have a professional team,’ she explains. 

‘I did not comprehend how many layers there are to creating a beautiful home that feels organic.’