I was told I was the wrong colour to be a swan

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Growing up in London, Julie Felix always dreamed of dancing on the city's most famous stages, but she says she ended up leaving the UK in the 1970s after a ballet company excluded her because of the colour of her skin. Instead, she became a star in the United States with the prestigious Dance Theatre of Harlem, the first classical ballet company to focus on black dancers. Under the tutelage of the great African-American dancer Arthur Mitchell, Julie travelled the world performing for the likes of the singer Prince, Pavarotti and President Ronald Reagan. A book has been written about Julie's life called Brickbats and Tutus. American environmentalist Molly Burhans calls herself a "park ranger nun". A devout Catholic, she's also a ground-breaking cartographer who's mapped all the land holdings of the Catholic Church so that they can be used for environmental and social justice purposes. Get in touch: [email protected] Picture: A montage of photographs from Julie's dancing career Credit: Courtesy of Julie Felix