Janie Taylor, New York City Ballet Principal dancer, interviewed for 'Cupcakes & Conversation'

Cupcakes & Conversation with Janie Taylor, Principal, New York City Ballet

Photography throughout :  Paul Kolnik

What motivates you at 8am on a Monday morning ?
I am usually dead asleep at 8am on a Monday morning. It is our one day off each week.

What are you looking forward to dancing this year ?
Well we don't always know what we will be dancing very far ahead of time, so it's hard to say. But our Spring season has lots of good Balanchine and 6 new ballets, so I think it will be a good one!

Who would you most like to dance with & what would you dance ?
I only got the chance to dance a couple times with Nikolaj Hübbe. I would have loved to dance with him more while he was in the company.

If you could dance anywhere in the world (not only in a theatre), where would you dance ?
The Acropolis in Athens. I have been on tour there with the company but wasn't in the two performances (or programs) we had there. The stage was so incredible and I remember being really disappointed I didn't get to dance on it.

How do you prepare your pointe shoes ?
I bend my shoes where my 3/4 shank ends and close it in the hinge side of a door. I do the same with the tip of the shoe too, bending it while I smash it.

What is your daily routine at the moment ?
I wake up at 9am and slowly make my way to the shower. I have breakfast and get to the studio a half hour before class to do exercises and get my pointe shoes on. After class I have rehearsals anywhere between 12 and 7. This is our rehearsal period schedule. After that, I usually spend the rest of the day vegging out.

You can ask six famous people to dinner - who would you invite ?
Wes Anderson, Zoe Deschanel, Tim Burton and Jack Skellington, George Balanchine, Sophie Calle.
And Maybe Monique L'huilier could dress us.....

What would surprise people about you ?
I play poker?

Who inspired you to dance ?
I guess my mom was the first person to inspire me to dance. Allegra Kent and Suzanne Farrell were big inspirations for me when I was at SAB. I also watched the New York City Ballet perform Balanchine's choreography every night while I was a student at SAB and seeing his work made me want to dance even more. It still makes me feel excited about dancing today.

What is your best piece of advice ?
Be yourself and go with your gut.

How do you prepare in the hours before a show ?
I usually eat Macaroni and Cheese about 2 hours before a show. That probably sounds funny, but I can't dance when I feel hungry and the carbs give me a little extra energy! Afterwards I do my make-up and hair, and leave about a half hour to warm-up.

Which role has tested you the most & how ?
Probably Square Dance. At the time, I felt like it was a role I wouldn't have necessarily been chosen first for, so it felt like an opportunity to show that I could do something technically demanding.

If you were asked to design your own ballet costume, what would you create ?
Something involving puffy sleeves, mixed patterns, an extreme excess of tulle, and maybe some pockets...

What do you look for in a dance partner ?
It's always nice when your partner is as invested and passionate as you are in working together to make a piece really good. I like when my partner and I are on the same page about what we are trying to accomplish. Having the same understanding of a piece is key. If you have different ideas about what a piece is about or the feeling it has, it's not going to be good. I certainly don't mind dancing with a really good partner either. I like being able to trust my partner completely so I can lose myself on stage and take risks. It helps to be with someone you can laugh with too.

Do you have a ‘signature step’ – one that comes naturally to you ?
Arabesque?

A phrase I use far too often is ... ?
Did you eat all the cookies!?

In terms of your ballet career, where would you like to be in a year from now ?
On stage.