July 26, 2025
Watters first danced his way into the ballet scene at 16 years old by joining a six-week summer intensive program with Houston Ballet.
You may have seen him gracefully dancing on your TikTok timeline but now Harper Watters is dancing into a new position as the first Black and gay principal dancer at the Houston Ballet, KHOU 11 reports.
Watters took his first leap into the world of ballet at age 16, enrolling in a six-week summer intensive with the Houston Ballet. What began as a short-term opportunity quickly became, in his words, a life-changing journey. Though initially brought on in a temporary capacity, Watters recalls telling his parents with conviction that this was his “moment.” “They offered me a spot in the second company, and to be honest I don’t think I knew what that meant, I heard ‘contract,’ I heard you get to train here for a year… And I called my parents, and said this is my moment,” Watters remembered.
Fourteen years later, his hard work and dedication paid off as he was recently promoted to principal dancer after returning from Japan. Not wasting any time, the New Hampshire native, just as he did 14 years ago, called his parents with the great news and updated his social media profiles. Watters celebrates his parents, who adopted him at just two weeks old, for their instrumental support and labels them as a key element in his success. “They gave me wings to soar here in Texas, and they have come to every performance… It was never no, it was ‘let’s do this together,’” Watters said.
When the curtains go down, Watters can be seen educating and performing on TikTok. With close to one million followers, some of his most popular content pays homage to Black ballet dancers both past and present. He gracefully mimics photos and moves from some of the most prominent and influential dancers to ever grace the stage, like Judith Jamison, Keenan English, and Debbie Allen. Watters says he uses the social platform to showcase his “characteristic flair.” ”I can be calm, cool and collected, I can be fabulous, fierce, and fearless,” the principal dancer said.
“You can add flexible too.”
@theharperwatters Replying to @broadcast711 we are only as strong as our stories 💐 #blackhistorymonth
Outside of social media and the stage, Watters hopes his new position uplifts the opportunity for others like him in the future, pushing for more diversity in the industry. Retired ballet dancer, Misty Copeland, who became the first Black woman named female principal dancer at the American Ballet Theatre, called the industry out for finally making such a move while the company has been in existence for 75 years.
During a CNN podcast in 2018, she highlighted that being a first doesn’t erase the racism that sits in the world of ballet.
RELATED CONTENT: Misty Copeland To Debut on Broadway
