Merrill Ashley | South China Morning Post

I've been a dancer all my life and it's important to keep in shape because ballet is so hard on the body. I've had two hip replacements and countless sprains. The worst years were in the 1980s, when I was getting severe back pain and no one was able to help me. I saw doctors, acupuncturists and therapists because my back was misaligned and the joint in my hip started to wear. Finally, I found a chiropractor who was able to help me.

I was born in Minnesota [in the US] and my family later moved to Vermont. Ever since I was five, when I saw my older sister take ballet lessons, I knew it was what I wanted to do. My parents moved to New York for me to study at the School of American Ballet. At the age of 16, when I was in the corps de ballet at the New York City Ballet, I became a soloist, then a principal.

I've been with the New York City Ballet since 1964, making me the longest-serving female member. I've also lived in the same apartment block since 1975, just a few streets down from the Lincoln Centre, where the company is located. For over 30 years, I've walked from my apartment block down to the Lincoln Centre. I relish that sense of discipline. I like the fact that, as a dancer, you have to have discipline. I am now semi-retired and I work as a rehearser for The George Balanchine Foundation. I train the principal.

One of my key roles in the company is to work with dancers on works by [choreographer] George Balanchine. As one of the few people who worked with Balanchine when he was alive, I am able to bring that spirit forward to the dancers, therefore my day really depends on the performance schedule. There are times when I stay at the company straight through the day, starting at noon, rehearsing, and then staying for the performance. Other days I may not have to go in to the office at all.

I met Balanchine when I was 16. I was in The Nutcracker ballet, part of the candy-cane section. He came out to teach us. People think of him as the one of the greatest choreographers and such a magnetic person.

He was a quiet gentleman, very detail-oriented but never, ever condescending to the young ones. He'd partner with us and show us the steps. The biggest discovery I made about dancing is that learning the technique is not just learning the alphabets, but it's using those alphabets to create words and sentences.

Balanchine's works are often not strong in narrative but his steps are always surprising. Sometimes he'd make me jump several steps en pointe. They are small things, but they make such a difference. When I perform a work by Balanchine it always allows my emotion to get involved. Whether I am having a good day or not, the feelings connect to the ballet. It's very different from traditional choreography, where so much emphasis is placed on techniques.

I quickly became one of the few dancers Balanchine paid close attention to. It wasn't always easy - if there was a difficult step, he would say, 'Why don't you show the others how it's done?' I went from the corps de ballet to principal by the time I turned 18 and Balanchine created ballets for me. As much as I admired him, there was always a bit of distance in our relationship because I was in awe of him. He loved to talk about politics and religion and I was always afraid to talk because I didn't feel I was smart enough.

Back then, the New York City Ballet was a competitive place. It wasn't open, hostile competition but I was one of several dancers who really went after the best parts. When Balanchine died, at the age of 83, it was a very upsetting time for the ballet company because he had really changed the way of danced. I wanted to continue what he started.

When the company is closed for the summer, I travel, as I am doing now, to work with companies like the Hong Kong Ballet as a guest instructor. Other times, my husband and I fly to Hawaii or Florida.

I don't tend to watch a lot of ballet performances - not that there isn't talent around. I like particular members of the American Ballet Theatre, the Kirov (Mariinsky), the Bolshoi and the Boston Ballet. It's funny because having been a professional dancer for so many years, it's actually my husband, whom I married in the 70s , who taught me a very important lesson.

He'd come see me perform a lot and one night we were on a date and we went dancing. He told me that when I am on stage, I am a lot stiffer and more emotionless than I am when I am on the dancefloor. It was something I hadn't noticed at all. I took his advice, naturally.

I've been married for more than 30 years. My husband is now retired from the United Nations, where

he served as a simultaneous translator. He speaks several languages, including Chinese, so when I am in Hong Kong I can use a few words I learned from him.

Surprisingly for a dancer, I don't really control what I eat. I enjoy taking lunch in the neighbourhood, where I get a sandwich, a salad or even a burger. I confess I am not much of a cook. But the great thing about New York city is there are always great restaurants around. We

tend to go to bed quite early, at around 10pm, unless I have to be at a ballet show.

I've been very lucky in my life to be doing this for so long. I don't have children so it's really allowed me to focus. Even though I am still nursing some parts of my body every day and it's become pretty fragile and injured, there's nothing else I'd rather do.'

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