Biography: Robert Lindgren was born on December 9, 1923 in Victoria, British Columbia. He served with the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II. He joined the Ballet Russe in 1944, whose principal choreographer was George Balanchine. He opened the Lindgren-Tyven School of Ballet in Phoenix with his wife, dancer Sonja Tyven. He danced with Ballet Theater and was a soloist with the New York City Ballet. He was the first dean of dance at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and he founded the North Carolina Dance Theater.