Linda Mitchell

Linda Mitchell’s primary career for the last 40 years has been as a medieval historian, sixteen of them at UMKC as the endowed professor of women’s and gender studies. But she also has had a career over the last 50 years as a teacher of dance, mostly ballet, focusing on teaching adults, especially those who are not primarily ballet dancers. Linda completed examinations in Cecchetti Method through Grade 6 (of 7) and performed as a student in the regional company the West Jersey Ballet in the 1960s and early 1970s. She received a BA–concentrations in dance and medieval studies–from Sarah Lawrence College in 1979 and taught ballet and pointe at Sarah Lawrence as well as in local studios in Bloomington, IN while a graduate student in history. She joined the faculty of Alfred University as a professor of pre-modern history in 1991 and soon after also assumed the title adjunct professor of dance in the Division of Performing Arts. Linda studied at Pennsylvania Ballet School, with Fredrick Bjornsson (Royal Danish Ballet), Finis Jhung, and Alfredo Corvino among many others in ballet, and with June Finch, Don Redlich, and others in modern dance. She studied dance criticism and history with Marcia B. Siegel and Rose Ann Thom. Linda also completed advanced studies in Labanotation and gained certification to reconstruct Labanotation scores, working with Ray Cook of the Dance Notation Bureau. In addition to pre-modern history and WGS, Linda has taught undergraduate and graduate classes in dance history, particularly the Diaghilev period.