It is strange: I love to be in front of the audience, but I have this opposite side that is afraid of meeting people, that doesn't want to talk. I feel it's like having a little hard stone inside me of problems, doubts, and shyness.
It would be nice to wake up and be able to walk to the bathroom. But even when I was 20 and at the Paris Opera, I had to crawl down the stairs; it is only when I start to work and stretch that my body begins to recover again.
The best times are when the time on stage becomes much slower and the movement much bigger - in that case, everything seems to flow. This state does not happen very often, but when it does, it is a magic kind of pleasure.
I've learned to listen to what's going on with my body.
Working with a new style of choreography is always a period of adaptation.
I don't think you can ever leave the stage easily.
I had never a thought of training to be a ballerina. I was a normal child. I never dreamed of the tutu.
When I was doing gymnastics, I was playing. It was fun. The ballet was not fun at all. Yes, I agree you must have discipline, but you don't need to be a witch. You can't teach a child like that. Three times a week, I went back to train as a gymnast. Then I was happy.
When you do one more 'Cinderella' or whatever, what is there to learn? Every part in the repertoire has a good side and a bad side, and the more often you do the same ballet, the more often the bad side comes out. If you want to give dance life, you must give it fresh food, not keep going back to the garbage to look for old scraps.
To be free on stage, you need to have been disciplined.
If an idea comes and I am attracted to it, I will do it.
I like creation even if it is a bit difficult. It is always very exciting.
Dance should touch people.
'Romeo and Juliet,' 'Manon,' 'Giselle' - they are not stupid stories. They have fantastic characters. They have a big package of emotion.
I just don't like authority. I do like authority when I respect it.
Terrorism is not a small problem.
Ballet is hard enough when you go with it; when you have to force your body to do things, it is so much harder.
As a professional ballet dancer, I have to accept that weekends are about work. The notion of a leisurely break with all the buzz and excitement of a Friday night simply doesn't exist for me.
There are things I cannot do, costumes I cannot wear. When I have taken stands on things, it is because I have thought carefully about them.
If I do not feel comfortable, I will not look comfortable.
