I was brought up in a Jewish home, but I was brought up to be human - not fanatical, which is something that I don't appreciate at all. I learned to become a humanist and not to dwell on the differences between Jews and Christians.
I wouldn't imagine I would become famous in America for my talk shows.
In a clown, we see what we do that makes us laugh and cry. I kept the white face, the tradition of the Pierrot. My clown became a romantic and stylized figure. I wanted to be an abstract and concrete figure, a symbol of humanity.
It's good to shut up sometimes.
I am a company in myself. My repertoire has become a bible for all mimes in the world.
Music conveys moods and images. Even in opera, where plots deal with the structure of destiny, it's music, not words, that provides power.