Mikhail Baryshnikov > Quotes

“I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to to dance better than myself.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“The problem is not making up the steps but deciding which ones to keep.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“Fundamentals are the building blocks of fun.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“When a body moves, it's the most revealing thing. Dance for a minute, and I'll tell you who you are.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“No one is born a dancer. You have to want it more than anything.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov, Baryshnikov at Work: Mikhail Baryshnikov Discusses His Roles

“Dancing can reveal all the mystery that music conceals.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“Perfection is a theory. You cannot be a perfect human being, perfect artist. You cannot be a perfect husband, you cannot be a perfect father probably and probably I am not. But go through your daily routine with hope you will be a little better in all respects, and do something meaningful”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“The essence of all art is having pleasure giving pleasure.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“Love is not like a potato--you can't throw it out the window.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“I really reject that kind of comparison that says, Oh, he is the best. This is the second best. There is no such thing.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“I was not extremely patriotic about Mother Russia. I played their game, pretending. You have to deal with, you know, party people, KGB. Horrifying.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“I hated life in the Soviet Union. You had to pretend something you didn't feel.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“Dancing is my obsession. My life.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“I have some Russian friends. But probably only 10 percent. I don't hang out usually in the big Russian communities in Brooklyn and New Jersey.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov

“Working is living to me.”
― Mikhail Baryshnikov