Mikhail Baryshnikov

I have made mistakes.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I cannot stand authority.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I like to make my own mistakes.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Dancers are made, not born.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

The problem is not making up the steps but deciding which ones to keep.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

To walk across the street is a risk.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Dance is one of the most revealing art forms.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I don't try to dance better than anybody but myself.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

It's what's left in life, to work with interesting people.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I am teaching more. That is what I do best.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I don't want to do anything Freudian.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Just sit and open your eyes and open your heart. It's dance theater.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I do not try to dance better than anyone else. I only try to to dance better than myself.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I like the most provocative and most surprising partnerships on stage. Intensity and surprise.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I have some Russian friends. But probably only 10 percent. I don't hang out usually in the big Russian communities in Brooklyn…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

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

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

It doesn't matter how high you lift your leg. The technique is about transparency, simplicity, making an earnest attempt.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I want to do exactly what I want to do. I'd rather gamble on the box office than beg for a grant.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

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

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Nobody else in the world has a form like the Native American musical, and Americans should be very proud.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Soviet regime in a way deprived me from my childhood in my homeland, because my father was in military, and after the…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

You cannot dance physically certain things. But look at tango dancers or flamenco or Japanese classical theater. You can, if you're smart…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I was not extremely patriotic about Mother Russia. I played their game, pretending. You have to deal with, you know, party people,…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

What do dancers think of Fred Astaire? It's no secret. We hate him. He gives us a complex because he's too perfect.…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

What brought me to the theater, no matter you're a Jew or a Russian or Armenian or Latvian, are suddenly illuminated by…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Be. Good. To yourself, to other people, to everything you do. It's a norm of life by which people should try to…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

My life has been immensely enriched by gay mentors, colleagues and friends, and any discrimination and persecution of gay people is unacceptable.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Film, theater and television always kind of scared me. I don't ever seriously think of myself as an actor at all, and…

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

No one is born a dancer. You have to want it more than anything.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Fundamentals are the building blocks of fun.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

The more injuries you get, the smarter you get.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I don't see in myself any perfection.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I am a performer. I go on stage and make a fool of myself.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I don't go to a gym, I don't do yoga. I don't do personal training.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

I was always interested in photography and other forms of art.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

“Love is not like a potato--you can't throw it out the window.”

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Your heart is very much connected to your mind.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Running a company is pretty demanding.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

What people will do to get away from boredom!

— Mikhail Baryshnikov

Your body actually reminds you about your age and your injuries - the body has a stronger memory than your mind.

— Mikhail Baryshnikov