Мысли танцора

What is the real motivation to dance?

What is the real motivation of dance? Why do people want to dance? Why do they strive for success in whatever they choose to do? How to get the inspiration to go further? Is it possible to create the performance of a lifetime? How to motivate someone to keep on striving for beautiful things like every artist? In which form of expression should someone bring what’s inside out to the world? How to find the proper educational opportunities?

With questions like this my mind is often occupied. With the future of life and the commitment to something that people do their whole lives. I for example do not know for sure what I want. Everyone should and can find their own path in life. It is a fact that it is possible. The one who searches will always find. I feel like a part of what’s inside of me hasn’t found its form of demonstration yet. It can be words, dance, texts, songs… With any one of these things, it’s possible to express something that the other form cannot bring out. Is it possible to combine all these things into one? Of course, there should be some kind of specialization, but maybe all of these forms should be available for someone who strives to bring their inner selves to the outer world. What sort of thoughts or experiences is pushing me to write these things, I don’t know. I will look at this text one day when I am in a clearer state of mind and think: such strangeness I have written. I feel I need to find a way bring myself into the state of mind that will be productive and will bring peace and completeness inside my inner self. Is this impossible?

Maybe the constant feelings of incompleteness are the engines which drive the people to new discoveries and development. I have no idea if the state I am in right now is right or wrong. Should it be like this or should I be thinking of other things and be feeling completely different? The results at the competitions don’t worry me too much. It is something else that I am constantly thinking about. Something to do with finding the right slot in life. I know it has to do with dancing somehow. My experience cannot be lost. I am not willing to leave the path I have taken for now. But how to enrich it? How to make it as productive as possible? How to be and feel as complete and developed as possible? These are just some thoughts I felt like sharing.

Watching the performances of great dancers, I try to understand what improved from year to year, if it improved. Usually, it is not so easy to find what exactly has gotten better. Yes, it changed somehow. But is it better? What are the ones that don’t improve doing wrong? There can be of course very many things that could play a role. There could be a word to generalize the whole thing. If the problems are not physical, I mean sickness or age, then they are mental. Could the reason be that they have lost their interest? Their motivation to strive for farther success because everything is already okay the way it is at the moment. Constant ability to earn a salary for example. Maybe it is because they have suspected that this point in their life would be different. Perhaps more successful. Not accepting the fact that after one achieves a successful result in dance nothing really changes.

At the beginning of a dance career a dancer dreams of the moment of being the world champion. He imagines it to be a special moment. The life will be different: he thinks to himself. Then the moment comes and the next day roses are not falling from the sky as one walks. No one asks for autographs on the streets. The sun does not shine bright every time the yesterday successful person decides to take a walk. Perhaps disappointment takes hold.

For some reason some dancers with titles did not leave a strong mark in the dance world. You don’t hear people talking about their past performances as remembered ones among dancers; you don’t see dancers copying their routines.

Let’s take three retired dancers for example. Paul Killick, Allan Tornsberg and Jukka Haapalainen. Paul Killick managed to leave a certain mark in the scene. He never had a chance to win the Blackpool or World professional Latin title, was usually second. This man is talked about among dancers, his videos watched and admired and his pride and slightly self-oriented charisma will never be forgotten. Alan Tornsberg also stayed in the middle of the pro final for many years and never won a big title against his fellow top 3 competitors in the professional division. His love for Latin American characterization and his hot relationship with his partners on the floor left a strong influence on the dance world.

You can see couples today looking very much like Killick or Tornsberg, not so much like Jukka Haapalainen. Jukka was usually placed in front of the 2 above mentioned dancers. He won Blackpool 4 times. It is the most prestigious title in the world. Was he never understood? I by no means want to say that he didn’t deserve his placing; he’s a very special dancer. Jukka Haapalainen and Sirpa Suutari were top class Pro competitors that won because they produced performances that were good enough to win. Does that mean that being a champion is not enough to spiritually be present in the minds and hearts of all young dancers? To be an inspiration to all of them? I truly have no idea.

Vadim Garbuzov, 1st February 2006