"And now let me tell you another secret. As in Nature everything in Art is a loop. For indeed, some of you think that technique & strength alone are important; and the others, think that beauty, inspiration & aesthetics alone are important. You fight & bicker over this with those who think the opposite of what you think.
"In fact as with many other things both parties are right. For in Art the important thing is Beauty alone: but beauty, in Art, is strength, it is technique. Or rather, it is brought on by strength & technique. You need more than technique, and you need more than strength: for they alone cannot bring you beauty. But they are necessary to achieve beauty. The technique of attitude, the technique of charm, of grace, of dramatic expression, they do exist as well. You can become a virtuoso technician at expressing yourself.
"The aesthetics of Art are a rare, subtle, complex matter. In dance you need strength to be beautiful: but the strength is built as much by your technical work as by the passion that you put into it, which itself is not acquired by work. How then to solve this dilemma? You must never train your technique for the sake of technique alone, but always for the sake of beauty.
"And if you seek beauty & beauty alone in all you do, you will realize by yourself that you need technique, and you need strength. But you need only the technique of artistic, beautiful expression, and you need only the strength of passion. Therefore as with everything it is double-sided: for the only thought you need is that of beauty; and the only action you need is technical work, the development of strength, through your passion for the art. You are right to think, then, that beauty alone is important, for it will guide you towards the work you have to achieve; and you are right also to think that technique alone is important, because it will guide you towards beauty. But you have to beware not to lose the passion that moves you onwards in your technical work, lest your courage fail you! Think then of beauty, time & again, think of what you want to present your audience with, and you will never lose your way."
- The Living Dancer
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