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Do I watch dancers as people? Yes, absolutely. Do I watch really good dancers for specifically who they are? Absolutely, because how they move best and how they look best is going to be most familiar to them, and not necessarily to me.
Twyla Tharp
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote emphasizes the importance of understanding individual expression in dance and art.

Twyla Tharp reflects on the nature of observing dancers, suggesting that while we perceive them as performers, it is their unique individuality and personal expression that truly captivates us. She implies that each dancer’s movements convey their identity and familiarity, enhancing the artistry of dance and the connection with the audience.

Themes

DanceExpressionArtIndividualityPerformance

In practice

Example use cases

In a discussion about the depths of artistic expression during a dance performance.

More from Twyla Tharp

I am still pushing the edge of what my body can do.
Twyla TharpRead
No one is born with skill. It is developed through exercise, through repetition, through a blend of learning and reflection that's both painstaking and rewarding. And it takes time.
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Without passion, all the skill in the world won't lift you above craft. Without skill, all the passion in the world will leave you eager but floundering. Combining the two is the essence of the creative life.
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I grew up in a drive-in theater, from the time I was 8, working in a snack bar watching four features every week. It was silent theater in the sense that this was a drive-in, which meant that I often saw the films going with no sound. But I learned to tell stories through action.
Twyla TharpRead
Without passion, all the skill in the world won't lift you above craft.
Twyla TharpRead
Creativity is more about taking the facts, fictions, and feelings we store away and finding new ways to connect them. What we're talking about here is metaphor. Metaphor is the lifeblood of all art, if it is not art itself. Metaphor is our vocabulary for connecting what we are experiencing now with what we have experienced before. It's not only how we express what we remember , it's how we interpret it - for ourselves and others.
Twyla TharpRead

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