100 Best Dance Quotes of All Time to Inspire and Motivate Dancers
Dance is more than movement—it’s an expression of the soul, a celebration of the human spirit, and a powerful journey of self-discovery. Whether you’re a beginner, a seasoned professional, or simply someone who loves the art, finding inspiration through words can help fuel your passion. This collection of 100 timeless dance quotes brings together wisdom, motivation, and love for the art of dance, perfect for every stage of your journey.
For those interested in daily inspiration, you may enjoy our Printable Affirmation Cards for Dancers and 56 Printable Dance Affirmations, both available on Etsy. Let’s dive into these beautiful quotes that remind us why we dance.
Why Dance Quotes Are Powerful
Quotes are like little bursts of inspiration—they offer clarity, encourage persistence, and remind us that we’re part of a larger community of artists. Dance can be challenging, and sometimes, a few words can reignite the flame when motivation wanes. Here are 100 of the most beloved and influential dance quotes, covering topics from resilience to joy, movement, and self-expression.
100 Best Dance Quotes of All Time
- “Dance is the hidden language of the soul.” – Martha Graham
- “Great dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion.” – Martha Graham
- “To dance is to be out of yourself. Larger, more beautiful, more powerful.” – Agnes De Mille
- “Dance is the timeless interpretation of life.” – Shah Asad Rizvi
- “We should consider every day lost on which we have not danced at least once.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
- “Dance first. Think later. It’s the natural order.” – Samuel Beckett
- “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.” – Alan Watts
- “Dancing is creating a sculpture that is visible only for a moment.” – Erol Ozan
- “Dance is the joy of movement and the heart of life.” – Unknown
- “Dance enables you to find yourself and lose yourself at the same time.” – Unknown
- “Dancing is the art of getting lost in the rhythm.” – Unknown
- “Dance is the poetry of the foot.” – John Dryden
- “Every dance is a kind of fever chart, a graph of the heart.” – Martha Graham
- “Dancers are the athletes of God.” – Albert Einstein
- “You don’t stop dancing because you grow old; you grow old because you stop dancing.” – Unknown
- “Take your broken heart, make it into art.” – Carrie Fisher
- “Dance to express, not to impress.” – Unknown
- “The job of feet is walking, but their hobby is dancing.” – Amit Kalantri
- “If you stumble, make it part of the dance.” – Unknown
- “To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak.” – Hopi Proverb
- “Dancers are instruments, like a piano the choreographer plays.” – George Balanchine
- “Dance is not an exercise. It’s a passion.” – Anonymous
- “Dance is a song of the body. Either of joy or pain.” – Martha Graham
- “Do it big, do it right, and do it with style.” – Fred Astaire
- “Life is the dancer and you are the dance.” – Eckhart Tolle
- “The dance is a poem of which each movement is a word.” – Mata Hari
- “Dancing is like dreaming with your feet!” – Constanze
- “Dance is art in motion.” – Unknown
- “The body says what words cannot.” – Martha Graham
- “Dance with your heart and your feet will follow.” – Unknown
- “Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.” – Kurt Vonnegut
- “Dance is your pulse, your heartbeat, your breathing.” – Jacques d’Amboise
- “To dance is to reach for a word that doesn’t exist.” – Christalyn Brannen
- “It takes an athlete to dance, but an artist to be a dancer.” – Shanna LaFleur
- “If you’ve got nothing to dance about, find a reason to sing.” – Melody Carstairs
- “Dancers don’t need wings to fly.” – Unknown
- “Dance, like art, is an expression of what it means to be human.” – Unknown
- “Dancing is moving to the music without stepping on anyone’s toes.” – Robert Brault
- “Dance is the joy of movement and the heart of life.” – Unknown
- “Dance is a way to find yourself and lose yourself.” – Unknown
- “Let us read and let us dance—two amusements that will never do any harm to the world.” – Voltaire
- “The dance can reveal everything mysterious that is hidden in music.” – Charles Baudelaire
- “Dance is a conversation between body and soul.” – Unknown
- “When you dance, you can enjoy the luxury of being you.” – Paulo Coelho
- “Nobody cares if you can’t dance well. Just get up and dance.” – Dave Barry
- “Dance is like life; it exists as you’re flitting through it, and when it’s over, it’s done.” – Jerome Robbins
- “Dancers are made, not born.” – Mikhail Baryshnikov
- “We dance to seduce ourselves.” – Gerard Arpino
- “The world is full of poetry. The air is living with its spirit; and the waves dance to the music of its melodies.” – James Gates Percival
- “Dancing is the loftiest, the most moving, the most beautiful of the arts.” – Havelock Ellis
- “Dance, smile, giggle, marvel, trust, hope, love, wish, believe.” – Unknown
- “The truest expression of a people is in its dances and its music.” – Agnes de Mille
- “I would rather dance as a ballerina, though faultily, than as a flawless clown.” – Margaret Atwood
- “Dance is the language of the soul.” – Unknown
- “Dance isn’t something that can be explained in words. It has to be danced.” – Paige Arden
- “Dance is the movement of the universe concentrated in an individual.” – Isadora Duncan
- “Dancing is silent poetry.” – Simonides
- “A star danced, and under that I was born.” – William Shakespeare
- “Dancing with the feet is one thing, but dancing with the heart is another.” – Unknown
- “Every day brings a chance for you to draw in a breath, kick off your shoes, and dance.” – Oprah Winfrey
- “Dance, dance, otherwise we are lost.” – Pina Bausch
- “To be creative means to be in love with life.” – Osho
- “Through dance, I create new worlds and open up doors to new possibilities.” – Unknown
- “Life isn’t about waiting for the storm to pass. It’s about learning to dance in the rain.” – Vivian Greene
- “Dance in the light of your soul.” – Unknown
- “Dance is the expression of a free heart.” – Unknown
- “Some people learn to dance. Others are born to.” – Unknown
- “Dance until the stars come down from the rafters.” – W.H. Auden
- “Dance as the narration of a magical story; that recites on lips, illuminates imaginations and embraces the most sacred depths of souls.” – Shah Asad Rizvi
- “I see dance being used as communication between body and soul, to express what it too deep to find for words.” – Ruth St. Denis
- “Everything in the universe has rhythm. Everything dances.” – Maya Angelou
- “To dance is to be perfectly out of balance.” – David Belle
- “Those who dance are considered insane by those who cannot hear the music.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
- “The dance: a minimum of explanation, a minimum of anecdotes, and a maximum of sensations.” – Maurice Béjart
- “The art of dance is the ability to tell a story without saying a word.” – Unknown
- “Dance is a song of the body.” – Martha Graham
- “To understand the culture, study the dance. To understand the dancer, study their soul.” – Unknown
- “Dancing is the closest thing to magic.” – Unknown
- “When you feel sad, dance.” – Unknown
- “Dance every performance as if it were your last.” – Erik Bruhn
- “Dancing is creating a sculpture that is visible only for a moment.” – Erol Ozan
- “When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor. It’s to enjoy each step along the way.” – Wayne Dyer
- “Dancers are not great because of their technique, they are great because of their passion.” – Martha Graham
- “Dancing is the body’s song.” – Martha Graham
- “Dance is the language of the soul.” – Unknown
- “I see dance as glue for a community.” – Twyla Tharp
- “Dancing is a perpendicular expression of a horizontal desire.” – George Bernard Shaw
- “Dance, when you’re broken open. Dance, if you’ve torn the bandage off. Dance in the middle of the fighting.” – Rumi
- “There is a bit of insanity in dancing that does everybody a great deal of good.” – Edwin Denby
- “Dance is the purest expression of every emotion, earthly and divine.” – Unknown
- “Dancing is like taking a mini-vacation from the stress of the everyday.” – Unknown
- “Dance with the music in your heart and you’ll never be off beat.” – Unknown
- “The best dancer is the one who enjoys it the most.” – Unknown
- “Dance with your spirit and leave the rest to the music.” – Unknown
- “The dance is a poem that each movement writes.” – Mata Hari
- “Dance teaches us to be in the moment, yet transcends time.” – Unknown
- “Every dance has a soul waiting to be released.” – Unknown
- “To live is to be musical, starting with the blood dancing in your veins.” – Michael Jackson
- “Dance is the voice of the soul speaking joy, pain, and passion.” – Unknown
- “Dancing is the art of getting lost in the rhythm.” – Unknown
The Role of Affirmations in Dance
In dance, as in life, self-belief plays a vital role in growth and performance. Dance affirmations can serve as daily reminders of strength, creativity, and purpose. For young dancers, this can help build confidence from an early age, which is why we’ve shared resources on Affirmations for Preschool Dancers. For older dancers, affirmation cards can inspire motivation and resilience in the face of challenges.
Affirmations like those in our articles on Affirmations for Dancers: The Power of Positive Thinking or the printable affirmations on our Etsy store can remind dancers of their worth, resilience, and ability to overcome obstacles.
How to Use Dance Quotes and Affirmations in Your Routine
- Daily Reminder: Choose a new quote each day or week and display it somewhere you’ll see often, like your mirror or dance journal.
- Affirmation Practice: Read through your affirmations before class or rehearsal to set a positive tone for the day. You can use our 21 Printable Affirmation Cards for Dancers for a structured approach.
- Incorporate in Lessons: For teachers, consider sharing an inspiring quote at the start or end of each class to set the tone and keep students motivated. This works well with 56 Printable Dance Affirmations, as they are designed to encourage positivity and focus.
Conclusion: Keep the Inspiration Alive
These 100 quotes are just a glimpse of the joy, love, and wisdom that dance brings into our lives. From helping us overcome challenges to building confidence and sparking creativity, the words of dancers, poets, and philosophers offer timeless support for our dance journey.
For more inspiration, be sure to check out our full resources on affirmations, like our articles on Affirmations for Preschool Dancers and Affirmations for Dancers. And, if you’re looking to make dance affirmations part of your daily practice, our Printable Affirmation Cards for Dancers and 56 Printable Dance Affirmations can be a powerful tool in your dance routine.
Let these quotes and affirmations inspire you to reach new heights, embrace challenges, and dance with passion every day!
Happy Dancing!
Taylor B.
