One of Time's Top 100 Most Influential People of 2015, Misty Copeland has become a household name for ballet. With Stephen Colbert dominating the late night circuit, Copeland teamed up with Yo-Yo Ma to celebrate his 60th for a special performance of Bach's "Cello Suite No. 2."
The duo has been trending on Twitter, and that's usually not the case with classical musicians and ballet dancers. Regardless, the pair performed to "Courante" with Copeland in a red leotard and Ma on strings.
Copeland became the first black female principal dancer for the American Ballet Theater in June and has become a figurehead in the ballet world. Ma, who turns 60 on Oct. 7, won a Grammy for Best Instrumental Soloist in 1985 for his recording of Bach's famed six compositions for cello.
As Bustle put it:
"The performance was a refreshing change, considering late-night is usually the setting for the radio-hit pop star or an up-and-coming rock band. Since taking the Late Show reins from David Letterman in September, Colbert has proven he has a different kind of vision for what after-hours television can be. With high topics like the Iran deal to classical pairings of Ma and Copeland, Colbert has elevated his role as late-night talk show host into a sophisticated kind of gig."
Ma also performed "The Swan" by Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns and George Gershwin's "Prelude No. 1" with Colbert's band, Jon Batiste and Stay Human.
Along with Ma's milestone birthday, the dancer is promoting a forthcoming documentary about her life entitled A Ballerina's Tale, which comes out Oct. 14.
So, without further ado, here is Copeland performing with Ma on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, a performance that has become a major topic of discussion.
