157 Quotes by Mikhail Baryshnikov

Working is living to me.

The body cannot lie. You cannot be somebody else onstage, no matter how good of an actor or dancer or singer you are. When you open your arms, move your finger, the audience knows who you are, you know.

We're trying to stretch our muscles creatively. It gives us so much more freedom.

The more injuries you get, the smarter you get.

Dance is an ephemeral, a fleeting art. To describe this momentum, every movement on stage, in words is virtually impossible.

I fell in love with New York. It was like every human being, like any relationship. When I was a young New Yorker, it was one city. When I was a grown man, it was another city. I worked with many dance organizations and many wonderful people. In the '90s, it became kind of a hard and unwelcoming city in many ways. It became conservative, like the whole country.

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

I get speeding ticket like everybody else. If the restaurant is full I'm waiting in line like everybody else.

I cannot belong to a nonprofit organization because when you receive grants, you have to make such great compromises with your artistic plans.