--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: At the time I started in ballet they were…" description: "\"At the time I started in ballet they were dancing 'The Spirit of Champagne' on pointe, in Paris. I thought, 'I don't want to dance the spirit of champa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d9/martha-graham-2832_ballet_at-the-time-i-started-in-ballet-they-wer_2644773.png" --- # At the time I started in ballet they were dancing 'The… ![“At the time I started in ballet they were dancing 'The Spirit of Champagne' on pointe, in Paris. I thought, 'I don't want to dance the spirit of champagne, I want to drink it!” quote by Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d9/martha-graham-2832_ballet_at-the-time-i-started-in-ballet-they-wer_2644773.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d9/martha-graham-2832_ballet_at-the-time-i-started-in-ballet-they-wer_2644773.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2d9/martha-graham-2832_ballet_at-the-time-i-started-in-ballet-they-wer_2644773.png) > “At the time I started in ballet they were dancing 'The Spirit of Champagne' on pointe, in Paris. I thought, 'I don't want to dance the spirit of champagne, I want to drink it!” [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She prefers to experience the essence of something directly rather than merely imitate its surface. **In simple terms:** Live the experience, don’t just mimic it. Key Takeaway Seek authentic engagement over imitation. Themes authenticity experience art passion Mood introspective motivational Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - dance performance - culinary tasting - travel immersion - musical improvisation Key Concepts embodiment direct experience personal expression Questions to Reflect On - What does “drinking the spirit” mean to you? - How can you move beyond surface imitation? A Different Perspective Imitation can feel hollow without personal connection. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ballet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ballet/) [Ballet dancing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ballet-dancing/) [Champagne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/champagne/) [Dance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dance/) [Dancing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dancing/) [Paris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paris/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Spirit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spirit/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [The Universe has a pulse and rhythm of its own, and it wants to carry you with it-so if you dance with Spirit, just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-choquette/the-universe-has-a-pulse-and-rhythm-of-its-own-and-it-wants-to-carry/) [Sonia Choquette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-choquette/) > [I think dance is amazing because what people don't realize is like when you dance your spirit and your soul get ignited. You're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurieann-gibson/i-think-dance-is-amazing-because-what-people-don-t-realize-is-like/) [Laurieann Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurieann-gibson/) > [Dance is the hidden langauge of the soul, of the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/dance-is-the-hidden-langauge-of-the-soul-of-the-body/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [I believe that we learn by practice... it is the performance of a dedicated precise set of acts, physical or intellectual, from which come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/i-believe-that-we-learn-by-practice-it-is-the-performance-of-a/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [Nobody cares if you can't dance well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/nobody-cares-if-you-can-t-dance-well/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [I came from the musical stage. My first show was '110 In The Shade.' I started as a ballet dancer and then sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lesley-ann-warren/i-came-from-the-musical-stage-my-first-show-was-110-in-the-shade-i/) [Lesley Ann Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lesley-ann-warren/) > [I started Ballet at a very young age and I was captivated immediately. It became my voice, means to overcome those final barriers to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-mckerrow/i-started-ballet-at-a-very-young-age-and-i-was-captivated-immediately/) Amanda McKerrow > [I started with ballet, and once I started to really like it, I got into more - I did jazz and tap, and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maddie-ziegler/i-started-with-ballet-and-once-i-started-to-really-like-it-i-got-into/) [Maddie Ziegler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maddie-ziegler/) > [I started with ballet and then my cousin Sarah introduced me to her tap teachers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-garcia/i-started-with-ballet-and-then-my-cousin-sarah-introduced-me-to-her/) [Adam Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-garcia/) > [I always knew I wanted to dance and when I was eight, I started ballet lessons at a church hall. They all wore pink…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlene-phillips/i-always-knew-i-wanted-to-dance-and-when-i-was-eight-i-started-ballet/) [Arlene Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlene-phillips/) > [I never thought of myself as special or particularly good at anything. But once I started ballet, suddenly I had a new identity: prodigy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misty-copeland/i-never-thought-of-myself-as-special-or-particularly-good-at-anything/) [Misty Copeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misty-copeland/) > [I wanted to be a dancer from when I was about nine or something like that and started ballet. I used to really like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mia-wasikowska/i-wanted-to-be-a-dancer-from-when-i-was-about-nine-or-something-like/) [Mia Wasikowska](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mia-wasikowska/) > [I started ballet in my early 20s. I studied for about ten years. Ballet is probably the one of the hardest things I've done,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herschel-walker/i-started-ballet-in-my-early-20s-i-studied-for-about-ten-years-ballet/) [Herschel Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herschel-walker/) > [I found at a young age that emotions aren't always handled with talking and other emotions. I started ballet, seriously around fourteen, and let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-adam-hamilton/i-found-at-a-young-age-that-emotions-aren-t-always-handled-with/) [Michael Adam Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-adam-hamilton/) > [Ballet dancing is arduous, strenuous activity. Students are engaged in physical training that rivals the training Olympic athletes undergo. At the same time, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-balanchine/ballet-dancing-is-arduous-strenuous-activity-students-are-engaged-in/) [George Balanchine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-balanchine/) ## More by Martha Graham > [The body never lies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/the-body-never-lies/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [You have no right to go before a public without an adequate technique, just because you feel. Anything feels - a leaf feels, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/you-have-no-right-to-go-before-a-public-without-an-adequate-technique/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/there-is-a-vitality-a-life-force-an-energy-a-quickening-that-is/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [Misery is a communicable disease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/misery-is-a-communicable-disease/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [People have asked me why I chose to be a dancer. I did not choose. I was chosen to be a dancer, and with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/people-have-asked-me-why-i-chose-to-be-a-dancer-i-did-not-choose-i/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [All things I do are in every woman. Every woman is Medea. Every woman is Jocasta. There comes a time when a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/all-things-i-do-are-in-every-woman-every-woman-is-medea-every-woman/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [The body is shaped, disciplined, honored, and in time, trusted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/the-body-is-shaped-disciplined-honored-and-in-time-trusted/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [The secret to dancing is that it is about everything except dancing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/the-secret-to-dancing-is-that-it-is-about-everything-except-dancing/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [What makes a great dancer is not technique. What makes a great dancer is passion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/what-makes-a-great-dancer-is-not-technique-what-makes-a-great-dancer/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [The body is a sacred garment. It's your first and last garment; it is what you enter life in and what you depart life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/the-body-is-a-sacred-garment-it-s-your-first-and-last-garment-it-is/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [You are unique, and if that is not fulfilled, then something has been lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/you-are-unique-and-if-that-is-not-fulfilled-then-something-has-been/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [You see, when weaving a blanket, an Indian woman leaves a flaw in the weaving of that blanket to let the soul out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/you-see-when-weaving-a-blanket-an-indian-woman-leaves-a-flaw-in-the/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [Dancing is just discovery, discovery, discovery - what it all means, the way the little bone near the ankle relates itself to the floor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/dancing-is-just-discovery-discovery-discovery-what-it-all-means-the/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [Theater used to be a verb; it used to be an act. But nowadays it is just a noun. It is a place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/theater-used-to-be-a-verb-it-used-to-be-an-act-but-nowadays-it-is/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) > [There is a force, a quickness that is translated through you into action. If you block it, the world will not have it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-graham/there-is-a-force-a-quickness-that-is-translated-through-you-into/) [Martha Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) [Explore all 148 Martha Graham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-graham/) ## More Ballet quotes > [“Afterwards Isabelle often wondered if the moments themselves were greater or the memory of them. At least the memory did not pass, while the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-bentley/afterwards-isabelle-often-wondered-if-the-moments-themselves-were/) [Toni Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-bentley/) > [One can be a great artist without being a great technician. There have been many famous ballet stars who did not have the ideal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-bujones/one-can-be-a-great-artist-without-being-a-great-technician-there-have/) Fernando Bujones > [So I'm studying ballet every day and really training so people will see me as a ballet dancer, which no one's seen before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sutton-foster/so-i-m-studying-ballet-every-day-and-really-training-so-people-will/) [Sutton Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sutton-foster/) > [No matter the style, the farther one goes the more obstacles increase, and the more distant appears the object it is desired to attain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-georges-noverre/no-matter-the-style-the-farther-one-goes-the-more-obstacles-increase/) [Jean-Georges Noverre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-georges-noverre/) > [What I love most about ballet is being able to express my emotions through dance, and to be able to bring others joy through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michaela-deprince/what-i-love-most-about-ballet-is-being-able-to-express-my-emotions/) [Michaela DePrince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michaela-deprince/) > [It is not a question of who dances but of who or what does not dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruth-st-denis/it-is-not-a-question-of-who-dances-but-of-who-or-what-does-not-dance/) [Ruth St. Denis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruth-st-denis/) > [Ballet is pure and demands that you serve something larger than yourself, whether it be beauty or art, or a combination of both. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-martins/ballet-is-pure-and-demands-that-you-serve-something-larger-than/) Peter Martins > [Even though I am a professional, and I know what the steps are, I don't quite know how I'm going to do them, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-farrell/even-though-i-am-a-professional-and-i-know-what-the-steps-are-i-don-t/) [Suzanne Farrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-farrell/) > [I'd rather be a guy that can build a house or fix a car than be able to walk like a ballet dancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-fimmel/i-d-rather-be-a-guy-that-can-build-a-house-or-fix-a-car-than-be-able/) [Travis Fimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-fimmel/) > [When I was 16, I moved to Torrance, California to train at a more advanced studio, and by 19, I joined the American Ballet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/misty-copeland/when-i-was-16-i-moved-to-torrance-california-to-train-at-a-more/) [Misty Copeland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/misty-copeland/) > [Bob's work gleaned from hoofing, from vaudeville, from ballet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-reinking/bob-s-work-gleaned-from-hoofing-from-vaudeville-from-ballet/) [Ann Reinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-reinking/) > [You can imagine me as a kid growing up in redneck Texas with ballet shoes, tucking the violin under my arm. I had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-swayze/you-can-imagine-me-as-a-kid-growing-up-in-redneck-texas-with-ballet/) [Patrick Swayze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-swayze/) > [I only started writing in the latter days of Spandau Ballet. I didnt know I could write because all had our roles within the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hadley/i-only-started-writing-in-the-latter-days-of-spandau-ballet-i-didnt/) [Tony Hadley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hadley/) > [All ballet, all reading, all music. That was my world, my inner world,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalia-makarova/all-ballet-all-reading-all-music-that-was-my-world-my-inner-world/) [Natalia Makarova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalia-makarova/) > [I can dance. I like hip hop and stuff and jazz movements, but I'm horrible in ballet. I tried.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keke-palmer/i-can-dance-i-like-hip-hop-and-stuff-and-jazz-movements-but-i-m/) [Keke Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keke-palmer/) [Browse all 1,227 Ballet quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ballet/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "At the time I started in ballet they were dancing 'The Spirit of Champagne' on pointe, in Paris. 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