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" The future of ballet is really in the hands of the creators, so if it's something that interests them to push the envelope with gender roles, then I think it will change. But if that's not of interest to a dance-maker, if their interest is to sort of preserve the way things have been done for the past 200 years, then nothing is going to change. "

Justin Peck

Way

Think

" My intention is to make sure that the new work being created for the ballet world is relevant. "

" There needs to be more encouragement and support for women - at an impressionable age - to explore that choreographic side of their brains. "

" My movement is usually about finding the balance between artistry, athleticism, and musicality. It always originates with a classical basis and expands outwards from that platform. "

" I grew up going on vacations with my family to New York every summer, and it's something that I always looked forward to. They'd take me to theater and shows and interesting restaurants, so I was genuinely really excited to move there. "

Justin Peck

New York

Family

" I never intended to dance in my own work, but we did what had to be done. "

" There is something very cyclical about the way fashion designers work. They work and work and work, the collection is finally shown, and after those 15 minutes, they must start over from the beginning. This is not unlike the way I work creating new dances. "

" Balanchine was just able to strike the balance between literal narrative and abstract dance. "

" There is something about Dior that reminds me of New York City Ballet. They both have a classic, glamorous basis but are trying to evolve the arts in new and innovative ways. "

" I feel like there is a different, new energy when I collaborate with a living artist, whether it be a composer, designer, lighting designer. I love that process. "

" I've always felt that Balanchine is my ultimate teacher. I learn the most from observing his work and also dancing in it. "

" When I saw 'Hamilton,' there was so much information so fast, I had to keep up with it. I find that quality in art exhilarating. "

" I've always liked vintage posters of California beaches. "

" It's expensive to get studio space and dancers. My whole first three years, I was sneaking around in the studios and getting kicked out of them. It was kind of depressing. "

" Ballet is a classically based art form, so it comes with a certain set of rules, at least to start with; then it's about how far you want to push from there. "

" It's time for there to be roles in the ballet where two men can fall in love, and a woman can lead a company of 20 dancers that include both men and women. "

" There's an innate feeling when I choreograph in juxtaposition to how I feel as a dancer. When I choreograph, I never really look into the mirror. But as dancers, we always check ourselves in the mirror. I do feel that when I choreograph, I am making a dance on my own body. Much of it is my own response to the music. "

" I always feel that the mark of a good ballet is that when you see it more than once, you get more out of it. "

" I try and create choreography that's in conversation with the music that the audience is hearing. "

" The reason I started dancing in the first place was my dad took me to see 'Bring In 'da Noise, Bring In 'da Funk' when I was 9. "

" I really enjoyed watching a ballerina named Denise Dabrowski who used to dance at California Ballet. She was a beautiful ballerina and role model for a lot of young dancers. "

" I think ballet has a bad reputation of being stuffy and depleted. "

" I'm really interested in working with groups. It's a very simple thing for me, and if I'm given the option to work with two people or 10 or 20 people, I'm going to take 10 or 20. I just think there's so much more I can do with that. "

Justin Peck

I Can

Work

" My choreography is very classically based. "

" American ballet... is ultimately an evolutionary art form, requiring many voices to creatively carry forward. "

" Ballet dancers are among the greatest living athletes. "

" It's very difficult to switch back and forth between running rehearsals and then stepping in to dance in rehearsals as a dancer. Just to switch hats in an instant can be a little bit jarring, mostly physically, on the body. "

" It's nice to have the support and infrastructure to do what I want creatively. That's kind of a rare thing to find. "

" When I'm making a new ballet, I usually read through the score a little bit, and then I have to go back and translate or transcribe all the counts for dancers because the way that you hear it is completely different from the way the musicians read and play it. "

" I think that story ballets, as great as they might sell, they're a really dated and awkward medium to tell stories through. I think there needs to be an updated or different approach to storytelling in dance. There needs to be less of a separation between the storytelling and the dancing. "