for Ohad Naharin
You can listen to music
with your eyes closed,
but you cannot watch dance
with your eyes closed.
When I was young, I danced
without a thought of being a dancer.
I remember being two years old,
jumping from the top of a closet
into a blanket held by my parents.
I cherish ambivalence,
not only in my work,
but in any work—
the lack of clarity
of what the source is,
the opportunity to be imprecise.
Ideas float in the air.
They come from almost anywhere.
What’s important is the coherence
of the work, not the coherence
of the background of the work.
There is always resistance.
Mirrors spoil it all.
When I cover the mirrors,
the result is better,
and the dancers enjoy dancing more.
We learn to give up old habits
for better new ones.
We connect to our speed,
delicacy, and explosive power.
Each of us holds a treasure,
but some of us have lost the key to it.
The secret is to listen
with your whole self.
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