I always looked at the process and the career of being a ballerina as sacred. It's a true gift to have this talent and perform these masterworks; it's sublime.

Next quotes

• Wendy Whelan:

  I feel the ticking clock. And at times, I've said if I don't dance, I'd rather die.

• Wendy Whelan:

  As I aged and I got stronger artistically, I really started to value my voice in performance - my '

• Wendy Whelan:

  I think the leotard for me became, after I retired, a sort of a symbol of the confines of still fit

• Wendy Whelan:

  My art form is my child, and that's what I give my focus to.

• Wendy Whelan:

  I knew I wanted to be a ballet dancer, but what kind, I wasn't sure. My two dream companies had bee

• Wendy Whelan:

  I look back, and I have no regrets, truly. Everything led me to the place where I am now.

• Wendy Whelan:

  Any time I've performed on one of the major stages, whether it be Covent Garden or the Paris Opera

• Wendy Whelan:

  I really only had one audition in my life, and that was when I was 14 or 15. When I was that young,

• Wendy Whelan:

  I've always felt like a different kind of ballerina.

• Wendy Whelan:

  So much is made about the beginnings of ballet careers, the rosebud, and then once the petals and l