Steven McRae answers the Gramilano Questionnaire… Dancers’ Edition

Q&A

When did you start dancing?
Age 7 in Sydney, Australia.

Why did you start dancing?
My sister inspired me; she was a brilliant gymnast who also danced.

Which dancer inspired you most as a child?
I didn't watch much dancing as a child, but a Drag Racing motor sport champion in the USA called John Force has been a constant inspiration. He started with nothing but a passion and desire to race, he is now a 16-time world champion!

Which dancer do you most admire?
I admire intelligent dancers! A dancer with a strong work ethic combined with talent is truly inspiring.

What's your favourite role?
I love performing Romeo; MacMillan's Romeo was my first principal role in a full length ballet!

What role have you never played but would like to?
A role that is yet to be created for me… 🙂

Who is your favourite choreographer?
That is like asking a parent to choose who their favourite child is!

Who is your favourite actor?
Ralph Fiennes is brilliant and he usually chooses interesting films to be involved with. I have a thing for Nicole Kidman too!

Who is your favourite singer?
This answer has quite an extreme range. I listen to Frank Sinatra often but I also love The Killers… perhaps The Killers need to cover some of Sinatra's songs!

What is your favourite book?
I like books that challenge or question the way we look at everything in life; books like Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers is the kind of thing I like.

What is your favourite film?
This is almost impossible to answer, but again it's quite an extreme range… American Psycho through to Senna, the documentary film about F1 legend Ayrton Senna.

Which is your favourite city?
I always love working in Tokyo; the city is alive and it makes you feel alive. However, there is no place like home, standing in Sydney harbour with the Opera House on one side and the Harbour Bridge on the other is something I'll never get tired of.

What do you like most about yourself?
I always try to find a solution to everything. You can't ‘fix' everything but you can at least try to find a way to improve a situation.

What do you dislike about yourself?
I have a tendency to set myself very high expectations… you run the risk of never feeling good about anything. Luckily I have the best wife in the world who always makes me acknowledge each stage of life.

What was your proudest moment?
Completing my University Degree in Business Management and Leadership whilst working full time and performing around the world has to be one of my proudest achievements. I think when my wife and I put the keys in the door of our first apartment that we bought was also something I am extremely proud of.

When and where were you happiest?
Sometimes you step on stage and it just feels right. When you have that moment and you feel free is when I am happy. Away from work I'd say I was extremely happy relaxing in the Maldives on my honeymoon… who wouldn't be!

What or who is the greatest love of your life?
My wife, my family, my friends, performing, dreaming, good food, Drag Racing.

What is your greatest fear?
Great White Sharks… I guess I should stop watching Jaws!

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
Could've, should've, would've… We are who we are, you just have to make the most of what you have and work on the things you want to improve.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Ask me in 60 years time!

What is your most treasured possession?
My wedding ring!

If you hadn't been a dancer what would you have liked to be?
An architect, a NHRA drag racer or an astronaut!

What is your most marked characteristic?
Speed… or my hair!

What quality do you most value in a friend?
The ability to listen to you when you need someone to open up to. True friends are there when you need them most, not just to celebrate the good times with.

What quality do you most value in a colleague?
That they are hardworking.

Which living person do you most admire?
Anyone who chases their dreams.

What do you most dislike?
When things in life are made more difficult or complicated than they need to be.

What talent would you most like to have?
The ability to fly so that I can visit my niece and nephew in Australia whenever I want.

What's your idea of perfect happiness?
I'd love to have children one day: doing the simple things in life yet inspiring them to grow and develop as people would make me very happy!
Perfection doesn't exist though…

How would you like to die?
I have no idea, but you can cross a ‘shark attack' off the list!

What is your motto?
‘Get on with it!'

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Gramilano( Editor )

Graham Spicer is a writer, director and photographer in Milan, blogging (under the name ‘Gramilano') about dance, opera, music and photography for people “who are a bit like me and like some of the things I like”. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy.

His scribblings have appeared in various publications from Woman's Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the ‘Danza in Italia' column for Dancing Times magazine.