Arthur Mitchell: The Extraordinary Life of Harlem's Ballet Visionary

"Arthur Mitchell (1934-2018) was one of the first Black principal dancers in the prestigious New York City Ballet and a favorite of legendary choreographer George Balanchine. He was a dancer who redefined American ballet through his own performance and the classical Black company he founded and ran for decades. Drawing on over a decade of research and more than one hundred oral history interviews, esteemed dance historian Lynn Garafola gives us the first full-length biography of Mitchell, and the first history of his company, the Dance Theatre of Harlem. Growing up in New York City, Mitchell became one of few African-Americans enrolled at the New York City Ballet's famous School of American Ballet, and eventually a member of the New York City Ballet. As a favorite of Balanchine's, Mitchell was catapulted to stardom, becoming the premiere Black classical dancer of his generation. In 1968, galvanized by the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Mitchell formed the Dance Theatre of Harlem, the first long-lasting majority Black ballet company, which he would lead through highs and lows, for over 40 years. Mitchell's story is the story of a complex man-ambitious, wildly talented, autocratic, private, and conflicted about his sexuality-the story of an influential company, and the story of the transformation of American dance"--