TESTIMONY. “Child victim of war and now renowned ballerina, Madonna wants to adapt my life”

When Mabinty Bangura was born on January 6, 1995 in Sierra Leone, evil fairies bent over her crib. The country that welcomes him is torn apart by a civil war and death, which mourns the entire nation, will not spare him. The little girl was only 3 years old when her father was killed by the rebels and her mother succumbed to Lassa fever. Mabinty also suffers from vitiligo, a skin-discoloring disease, which is considered a mark of witchcraft in Africa.

In his family, no one wants to take the risk of sheltering under his roof the so-called “devil’s child”. The little girl therefore finds herself in the orphanage, just a few days after the death of her parents. “They named us from 1 to 27. Number 1 was the favorite child of the orphanage and 27, the least favorite. I was number 27”, she will tell in her autobiography Orphan No. 27 (ed. Presses de la Cité). Malnourished and mistreated due to her vitiligo, she finds herself in a second war zone.

At 17, she becomes the youngest to perform at the Dance Theater in Harlem

Fortunately, in 1999, at the age of 4, the little girl was adopted by Elaine and Charles DePrince, an American couple from New Jersey. Finished Sierra Leone, direction the United States, where she is renamed Michaela. She grew up in a loving family of eleven children, nine of whom were adopted. And above all, she cherishes the dream of becoming a ballerina since she saw, in a magazine, the photo of a dancer in a tutu.

Elaine, his adoptive mother, encourages him by enrolling him in a course. “I was afraid that my vitiligo would still cause problems, but my mother reassured me.” Her promising level pushed her to enroll in a famous American ballet competition dedicated to young talents. “My performance allowed me to obtain a scholarship to the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School of Dance of the American Ballet Theater where, despite the obstacles linked to the fact that I am black in this ultraconservative world of classical dance, I I was able to develop my talents and my career,” says the dancer. Brilliant, she became, at 17, the youngest ballerina to perform at the Dance Theater in Harlem, New York, before being hired by the National Ballet of Amsterdam.

Her journey caught the attention of Madonna

However, Michaela does not forget her childhood. She works as an ambassador for the international organization War Child, which helps child victims of war. This incredible journey attracts the attention of the singer Madonna, who wishes to adapt the extraordinary destiny of the ballerina to the cinema.

“Michaela’s journey has resonated deeply with me as an artist and activist. We have a unique opportunity to shine a light on Sierra Leone and let Michaela be the voice of all the orphaned children she grew up with. I I am honored to bring her story to life”, explains the star about the one who is now second dancer at the Boston Ballet. Michaela’s life continues to inspire thousands of children.