Inspirational Quotations

Inspirational Quotes by Agnes de Mille (American Dancer)

Agnes George de Mille (1905–93) was an American dancer and choreographer of ballets and musicals. A prominent influence on the arts in twentieth-century America, she is known for her creative contribution to 20th-century ballet and her choreography for Broadway musical theater.

Born into a family of theater professionals in New York City, Agnes was the niece of movie director Cecil B. DeMille. Agnes earned a B.A. degree in English from the University of California-Los Angeles. After learning dance, she moved to New York City and toured the United States and Europe (1929–40,) giving concerts of her character sketches in mime dance. She created her first significant roles in ballet with the Ballet Rambert, performing in Antony Tudor’s works and later studying modern dance.

De Mille’s style of dancing mixed classical ballet with folk dance. She choreographed the ballet Rodeo (1942) and the Broadway musicals Oklahoma! (1943,) Brigadoon (1947,) Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1949,) Paint Your Wagon (1951,) among others.

De Mille choreographed ballets for the American Ballet Theatre, including A Rose for Miss Emily (1971,) Texas Fourth (1976,) and The Informer (1988.) Her publications include Dance to the Piper (1952,) To a Young Dancer (1962,) The Book of the Dance (1963,) Lizzie Borden: A Dance of Death (1968,) and Speak to Me, Dance with Me (1973.)

De Mille’s autobiographies are And Promenade Home (1958) and Where the Wings Grow (1977.)

More: Wikipedia READ: Works by Agnes de Mille

The truest expression of a people is in its dance and in its music. Bodies never lie.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Dance

Modern dancers give a sinister portent about our times.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Dance

Theater people are always pining and agonizing because they’re afraid that they’ll be forgotten. And in America they’re quite right. They will be.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Theater

The creative urge is the demon that will not accept anything second rate.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Creativity

[T]hen I did the simplest thing in the world. I leaned down… and kissed him. And the world cracked open.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Kiss

To dance is to be out of yourself. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful. This is power, it is glory on earth and it is yours for the taking.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Dance, Dancing

It takes great passion and great energy to do anything creative, especially in the theater. You have to care so much that you can’t sleep, you can’t eat, you can’t talk to people. It’s just got to be right. You can’t do it without that passion.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Eating

No trumpets sound when the important decisions of our life are made. Destiny is made known silently.
Agnes de Mille
Topics: Decision, Decisions, Destiny

Living is a form of not being sure, not knowing what next or how. The moment you know how, you begin to die a little. The artist never entirely knows. We guess. We may be wrong, but we take leap after leap in the dark.
Agnes de Mille

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