Zitat des Tages von Patricia McBride:
I danced with Jacques d'Amboise. At that time, he was the tallest man in the company. So it was a different kind of choreography. It was lyrical.
Most ballets are more interesting than most men.
Mr. Balanchine wanted me to be myself. He didn't want me to look like anyone else. I love teaching our company dancers the Balanchine ballets. I try to give them what was passed down to me and what I learned from him. They dance it so beautifully. It also keeps me close to Mr. Balanchine. He's with me every single day.
I used to say I didn't want to teach. I was still excited about dancing. It's hard to do both. It's as exhausting teaching as it is to dance.
The ballets you do make you into the final product you are. And I had extraordinary partners.
I cherish the ballets made for myself by Mr. Balanchine. He never lost his temper. He was quiet, humble, the genius of the 20th century.
Mr. Balanchine was a great gentleman, and he loved his dancers. He was devoted to his company. He came to the ballet every night, and his presence was felt. It was like the whole company was dancing for him. And if he liked you, he trusted you to be yourself. He didn't try to change you and make you into something you were not.
I felt that Balanchine was my father towards me. He was the person I most admired and looked up to.
Breathe through your movements.
It was extraordinary 'cause I was 17 years old when I first danced with Edward Villella. And we were both young. But I had seen him dance, and he was already a star. So he was just so gentle and wonderful and kind, and we had a great rapport together. He was one of the most exciting dancers of our day.
When I hung up my toe shoes, I didn't look back. In all my years, I have never looked back.
I want to be happy, to look back and feel I danced well at the end of my career and didn't dwindle off. It would be too sad.
In the beginning, he taught you how to hold your fingers, use your head, hold your shoulders, how you glissade, bourre - the exact way he wanted you to do the steps. It was relearning the whole Balanchine technique.
