Twyla Tharp Quotes

I say over and over again that I am just standing on the shoulders of so many who have set this path for me, and they may not be seen or recognized or have been given an opportunity to have a voice, but I'm here representing all of those dancers. Dance Theatre of Harlem Virginia Johnson, Tai Jimenez, Lauren Anderson.

Every company has its own texture, vocabulary, and singular place in dance history, and I have always wanted to share my perspective of these world renowned institutions.

I've been doing African dance all my life.

However, the moral center of New York City, I believe, is the New York City Ballet.

My mother was very keen I learn dance and I learnt so many forms.

I never danced growing up.

I grew up going to see my sister dance, both at the ballet and later as a modern dancer, and have always been a big fan of the ballet. So I have had a long relationship with dance.

The life of a dancer is tragically short. What is remarkable about the New York City Ballet is that it makes us forget that. Because it keeps the ballet alive.

We've had nothing but support from everybody in the dance world for a National Dance Day.

As long as there are dancers around who love to dance, there will be an Alvin Ailey American Dance Company. We miss him so much, but he's alive as soon as you see a dancer hit the stage.

To the humblest among them, who may be listening to me now, I want to say that the masterpiece to which you are paying historic homage this evening is a painting which he has saved.

I wanted to do dance with the same seriousness as art was done and acknowledged, not with the entertainment factor that is always connected to theater and film.

The creative treasure of Israel's artists and writers will survive forever.

I think that a society lives or dies according to its respect for - for its art.

I've witnessed the survival of the theatre several times when it was meant to be dying.

Yes, anybody can dance. Whether it is right or wrong, that doesn't matter.

My whole family is involved in the arts - my sister is a professional Bharatnatyam dancer, and my dad helps me out on the music business end.

The youth coming up is interested in dance now, and they're coming to the shows. That's a blessing for those of us who create.

Pure dance form is not dying.

You can't argue that you have to have art, and prove it to anybody. Why should I give $1,000 to art when there are people starving? Of course, that's true. But just because you can't, theoretically, defend the arts, or make a sensible argument for their preservation, doesn't mean they're not important.

I believe that the arts of a culture are terribly important and yet almost indefensible.

I was very happy with the success of 'Noise/Funk,' but of course, there is a lot more that I have to say about the dance, about the history, about the people involved with the dance and their history.

My mom put me into dance classes, found out that I can't dance to save my life.

Tap dancing is like... it's equivalent to music, not only for the African American community, but also for the world. Tap dancing is like language; it's like air: it's like everything else that we need in order to survive. I'm blessed and honored to be knowledgeable of the art form and to be a part of the art form.

I'm glad that nowadays people are aware of varied dance genres, thanks to reality TV dance shows.