Wilkinson:I saw Misty in a documentary years ago, on television.
She was a little girl at the time 15, I think.
We don’t term dancers as prodigies in ballet, but she had this breathtaking physical ability.
I got on my knees right there and prayed.
I said, “c’mon bless this young girl and let her go on and develop.”
And I waited and waited and hoped to see her in a performance.
The foot to the floor.
She had a brio and elan and a lightness about her that none of the other dancers had.
When she came onstage, it was like a breath of air.
And I thought, Who’s that?
And it was Misty.
I will never forget our first meeting.
I was instantly struck by her.
She has this lovely body her legs, her arms and her beautiful face.
And she speaks so beautifully, too.
We talked about her experiences in the ballet and mine.
Copeland:The first time I heard Raven’s name was when I saw the 2005 documentaryBallets Russes.
When I learned about Raven, I cried.
I felt so connected to her.
We’ve been connected ever since.
Wilkinson:One of my favorite memories is Misty’s wedding reception last year.
I did some dancing, twisted my hips a bit.
I’m 82 now, so it takes a bit of twisting to do some twisting!
Copeland:She comes to every important show I have.
No matter what’s happening in her life, she thinks of others.
Wilkinson:Her presence on the stage has brought people you would hardly ever see to the ballet.
It’s extraordinary when she’s dancing.
The plaza of Lincoln Center is just packed with people packed with people!
coming to see her dance.
Sometimes I get upset about something, and I think, Misty wouldn’t be upset.
She would look at this differently.
I look to her as an example of how to think and how to learn and how to behave.
Because we are all still learning.
Even at 82, I am always learning.
Bittar declined; he needed them.
“I ran into her after that,” he remembers.
“I said, ‘Iris, I saw the show.
I loved it.’
She hit me on the head and said, ‘You bozo!
I wanted to wear your designs at the opening, to show them off!’
They seemed literally inseparable until he died in 2015.
We’d all talk about fashion, their business, my business, our childhoods.
If you have a true friendship, it’s amazing what unfolds.
Apfel:Alexis is almost exactly half my age.
I don’t think age has much to do with friendship.
Most of my friends are half my age.
I don’t feel like I’m 95.
I don’t feel, with my friends, that they consider me old.
They just consider me a friend.
Alexis has a winning personality, and I have great respect for the work he’s accomplished.
We can dig into that conversation.
