Robert Mills became Artistic Director of Oklahoma City Ballet in 2008, 14 years after he began his association with the company. Having the rare opportunity of dancing in both of Oklahoma’s professional ballet companies, Mills joined Oklahoma City Ballet as a company dancer in 1994 after dancing with Tulsa Ballet. While dancing in Oklahoma City Ballet, he taught for many years in the company’s school helping to train numerous dancers that have gone on to professional careers. Since he took the helm of Oklahoma City Ballet, the company began a new era of growth and renewal. In the past eight years the number of performances doubled, the annual budget of the organization tripled, the annual summer intensive draws aspiring ballet dancers from around the country, and dancers and choreographers from around the world want to work with Oklahoma City Ballet. 

Originally from Northwest Indiana, Mills began formal training in gymnastics at the age of seven and soon after shifted his focus to dance. He studied in Chicago, concentrating on ballet with renowned pedagogue and author Anna Paskevska, with former soloists of London’s Royal Ballet Richard Ellis and Christine DuBoulay, and at the Ruth Page Foundation with Larry Long. While in Chicago he studied modern dance with some of the city’s best instructors. Mills received further training in ballet with full scholarships from the Milwaukee Ballet School, Richmond Ballet, The Rock School in Philadelphia and the Joffrey Ballet School in New York City. 

Mills enjoyed a vast performing career touring internationally as a guest artist and dancing with the Milwaukee Ballet, Oklahoma City Ballet, Eugene Ballet and Ballet Idaho. He has worked with some of ballet’s foremost artists including Basil Thompson, Christopher d’Amboise, Gloria Govrin, John Taras and Donald Mahler. His repertoire includes all the classical standards plus works by George Balanchine, Anthony Tudor, Agnes De Mille, Peter Anastos, Margo Sappington, Ann Reinking, Lila York, Toni Pimble and many others. During his time with Kansas City Ballet he worked closely with Todd Bolender and the Balanchine Trust in the reconstruction of the lost George Balanchine ballet Renard. Prior to joining OKC Ballet as Artistic Director, he spent three years as Artistic Director of Ballet Nouveau Colorado (now called Wonderbound) bringing that company into the national spotlight. A sought-after teacher, he teaches on faculty at The Dance Center of Oklahoma City Ballet and has taught at the Kansas City Ballet School and Ballet Idaho Academy along with numerous summer programs across the country including the University of Oklahoma, Burklyn Ballet, Ballet Academy of Texas, and Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet. An accomplished choreographer, he has created ballets for Oklahoma City Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Dance Theatre of Tennessee and Ballet Nouveau Colorado among others.