Arthur Mitchell (March 27, 1934 – September 19, 2018) was an American ballet dancer, choreographer, and founder and director of ballet companies. In 1955, he was the first African-American dancer with the New York City Ballet, where he was promoted to principal dancer the following year and danced in major roles until 1966. He then founded ballet companies in Spoleto, Washington, D.C., and Brazil. In 1969, he founded a training school and the first African-American classical ballet company, Dance Theatre of Harlem. Among other awards, Mitchell was recognized as a MacArthur Fellow, inducted into the National Museum of Dance's Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney Hall of Fame, and received the United States National Medal of Arts and a Fletcher Foundation fellowship.

Early life

Mitchell was one of four siblings, the son of a building superintendent, and grew up in the streets of Harlem, New York.

As a teenager, Mitchell was encouraged by a guidance counselor to apply for admission to the High School of Performing Arts.

New York City Ballet

In 1955 Mitchell made his debut as the first African American with the New York City Ballet (NYCB), performing in Western Symphony.

Mitchell left the New York City Ballet in 1966 to appear in several Broadway shows, and helped found ballet companies in Spoleto, Italy, Washington, D.C., and Brazil, where he founded and directed the National Ballet Company of Brazil. Mitchell used $25,000 of his own money to start the school. About a year later he received $315,000 in a matching funds grant from the Ford Foundation.

In Harlem, DTH created an explosion of professional opportunity in dance, music, and other related theater activities. The school has an outstanding number of former students who have been successfully engaged in careers as dancers and musicians, as technicians in production, stagecraft, and wardrobe, and in instruction and arts administration. With this success, DTH challenged the classical dance world to review its stereotypes and revise its boundaries.

Death

Mitchell died on September 19, 2018, from renal failure.

Awards and honors

thumb|upright=1.0|Arthur Mitchell, NY (1998)

Mitchell received numerous awards in recognition of his groundbreaking work and achievements, including:

  • 1989 – Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement.
  • 1993 – Kennedy Center Honors, one of the youngest persons recognized.
  • 1994 – Named as a MacArthur Fellow.
  • 1995 – United States National Medal of Arts, presented by the President
  • 1999 – Inducted into the National Museum of Dance C.V. Whitney Hall of Fame, Saratoga Springs, New York.
  • 2001 – The 7th Annual Heinz Award in the Arts and Humanities.
  • 2005 – Awarded a Fletcher Foundation fellowship in its inaugural year, in recognition of his contributions to African-American culture.
  • 2006 – Mitchell and the Dance Theatre of Harlem were honored with a dinner at the White House by President George W. Bush.

In addition, Mitchell received honorary doctorates from numerous leading universities, including University of North Carolina School of the Arts (1985), Juilliard School (1990), Hamilton College, Brown University (1996), City College of New York, Harvard University, The New School for Social Research, Williams College, Southern Methodist University (2009) and Columbia University (2016). He also received awards from the City of New York and community organizations.

See also

  • List of African-American firsts
  • List of African-American ballerinas

References

Notes

Further reading

  • Miles, J. H., J. J. Davis, S. E. Ferguson-Roberts, and R. G. Giles (2001). Almanac of African American Heritage. Paramus, NJ: Prentice Hall Press.
  • Potter, J. (2002). African American Firsts. New York, NY: Kensington Publishing Corp.
  • Levine, Debra, "Talking with Dance Theatre of Harlem's co-founder Arthur Mitchell", Los Angeles Times, July 6, 2010
  • Dance Theatre of Harlem
  • Arthur Mitchell's oral history video excerpts at The National Visionary Leadership Project
  • Tufts E-news (Tufts University) re Arthur Mitchell
  • Infoplease (2007)
  • The John F. Kennedy Center for The Performing Arts (2007)
  • Finding Aid to the Arthur Mitchell Collection at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library
  • Arthur Mitchell: Harlem's Ballet Trailblazer (2018), an exhibition at Columbia University
  • Arthur Mitchell / New York City Ballet-Principal / Dance Theatre of Harlem- Co-founder Artistic Director Emerita mobballet.org
  • Taliah Mancini: Dance Theatre of Harlem at The Broad Stage: A Review ladancechronicle.com 26 April 2018