I often say that in making dances I can make a world where I think things are done morally, done democratically, done honestly. Twyla Tharp More Quotes by Twyla Tharp More Quotes From Twyla Tharp I've survived inattention. I hope to God I survive attention. Twyla Tharp inattention survived attention I learned very early that an audience would relax and look at things differently if they felt they could laugh with you from time to time. There's an energy that comes through the release of tension that is laughter. Twyla Tharp laughter happiness art I don't mean this, but I'm going to say it anyway. I don't really think of pop art and serious art as being that far apart. Twyla Tharp mean art thinking I have always felt one of the things dance should do - its business being so clearly physical - is challenge the culture's gender stereotypes. Twyla Tharp dance challenges culture I repeat the wake-up, the workout, the quick shower, the breakfast of three hard-boiled egg whites and a cup of coffee, the hour to make my morning calls and deal with correspondence, the two hours of stretching and working out ideas by myself in the studio ... That's my day, every day. A dancer's life is all about repetition. Twyla Tharp workout dance morning The first steps of a creative act are like groping in the dark: random and chaotic, feverish and fearful, a lot of busy-ness with no apparent or definable end in sight. Twyla Tharp creativity sight dark If you're speaking of love, you really must include the element of uncertainty - and perhaps it's best approached as the art of constant maintenance. Twyla Tharp maintenance love-you art Creativity is a habit, and the best creativity is the result of good work habits. Twyla Tharp best good creativity work I used to say to myself, 'Well, in the old days everybody danced because they loved to dance, and there was none of this professional garbage going on about how much can you get for this or that or the other, or any of the kinds of things that insecurity can sometimes promote. Sometimes it's for the wrong reasons.' Twyla Tharp myself you dance sometimes To survive, you've got to keep wheedling your way. You can't just sit there and fight against odds when it's not going to work. You have to turn a corner, dig a hole, go through a tunnel - and find a way to keep moving. Twyla Tharp fight you work way What we want from modern dance is courage and audacity. Twyla Tharp modern dance courage want I find the aesthetics of the 20th century hopelessly barren. Twyla Tharp find 20th-century barren century My favorite audience is everybody. I worked in a drive-in theater from the time I was 8 years old until I went to college, and I'm accustomed to everybody can buy a ticket and everybody should be taken into account. Twyla Tharp old audience college time I've always believed that a dance evening energizes an audience, that an audience goes out feeling chemically stronger and more optimistic. This is what I understand about dance. And this is an important thing. We need this. Our culture needs it. Twyla Tharp feeling evening dance culture You can only generate ideas when you put pencil to paper, brush to canvas... when you actually do something physical. Twyla Tharp pencil something you ideas Nothing is more terrifying to me, really, than the status quo. I'll make mistakes before I keep doing something the same way. Twyla Tharp mistakes nothing me way A lot of people insisted on a wall between modern dance and ballet. I'm beginning to think that walls are very unhealthy things. Twyla Tharp beginning think dance people I do at least 75 push-ups a day. Twyla Tharp least push-ups day Counterpoint is a component that gives real energy, and it is about optimism. Twyla Tharp about optimism energy real Nobody worked harder than Mozart. By the time he was twenty-eight years old, his hands were deformed because of all the hours he had spent practicing, performing, and gripping a quill pen to compose. That's the missing element in the popular portrait of Mozart. Twyla Tharp pen nobody time hands
