#38 Epic by Nature: Alexander Staeger on Life, The Royal Danish Ballet & Beyond

Alexander Staeger, Soloist with The Royal Danish Ballet, Director of the Royal Danish Ballet- Summer School, Entrepreneur and all around awesome human. 

Based in Copenhagen, Denmark but a world citizen at heart- Alex's ambitions are great and at 39 years old he has achieved more than most people ever will in a life time. 

Now standing at a cross road- from what was and what is yet to come- we meet him. And Im sure the future holds nothing less than the past:

It's going to be Epic- Why? Because it's Alexander Staeger. Naturally. 

Career highlights

Alexander has danced soloist parts in Swan Lake, La Bayadère, Romeo and Juliet, Chroma, Petite Mort and Bella Figura by Jiri Kylian, Young gypsy in Don Quixote, Peasant pas de deux in Giselle, La Stravaganza, Symphony in 3 by G. Balanchine, Louise Midjord's Water and Jorma Uotinen’s Earth. Alexander has been a part of the majority of Corpus' productions.
Alexander has been the director of the Royal Danish Ballet - Summer School since 2014 and has coordinated and planned several events, performances and outreach work for The Royal Danish Theater since 2005. He has been a teacher at the Royal Danish Ballet School since 2011 and production writer for Cross Connection Ballet Company in 2012.

Education: Admitted to the Royal Danish Ballet School in 1993.
Hired as an apprentice with the Royal Danish Ballet, 2002. 
Corps de ballet with the Royal Danish Ballet in 2004
Promoted to Soloist in Feb. 2011

Joined Corpus in 2017

Instagram @alexander_staeger

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Transcript

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Josephine McGrail: Welcome, welcome, everybody! Oh, I'm so excited. I'm sitting down with my very old friend, who isn't old, by the way, but, you know, we've known each other for a long time. I'm sitting down with the one and only, the wonderful Alexander Steyer.

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Josephine McGrail: As I was prepping for our podcast today, Alex, I was looking you up. I was like, okay, I know he's a ballet dancer, because we know each other from the Royal Danish Ballet back in Copenhagen, but apart from being a ballet dancer, I know he does so many other things as well. How am I gonna intro you?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: At a creature.

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah, right? So, okay, so from what I could understand, you're also an entrepreneur, you're also… I don't know if you still have your own ballet school, but I know you used to. I also know that, you've been the director of the Royal Danish Summer School.

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Josephine McGrail: For many, many years. In 2011, you were promoted to become a soloist with the company.

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Josephine McGrail: And since 2011, you've also been a teacher for the Raldinis Ballet, and you've also been connected to Corpus.

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Josephine McGrail: Am I missing something? Anything else you want to add to that intro, Alex?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: There are some future responsibilities. I'm in charge of a choreographic development project currently in the Royal Danish Ballet, where we

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Strengthen and develop the artists and choreographers of the future.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I have recently been put in charge of taking care of a very unique August Bourneville legacy at the Royal Danish Ballet. So, August Bourneville is this dance tradition that has been passed down since 1800 and something.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: From generation to generation, and it's still being performed and kept alive today.

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Josephine McGrail: So you're kind of, like, the keeper of the secret steps, the keeper of the, the lineage of August Bonneville, which obviously, to… to people that are not into… that don't know a lot about ballet, is one of the very, very, very famous, dance styles, and known, sort of, all around the world. So that's really what the Royal Danish, particularly, is known for.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Exactly.

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Josephine McGrail: Okay, well, welcoming you to the podcast, Alex. As always, let's dig back in time, let's go back in time a little bit. So, where were you born, and what kind of family situation were you born into? I know you were a twin! This just came to me now! You were born a twin! Oh, okay, tell us everything.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yes, well, I grew up in a town called Wirom, sort of the suburbs of Copenhagen.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Very idyllic childhood with my… my parents, married parents.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And, I have, as you mentioned, a twin sister and a younger sister.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And growing up in Biom was… first of all, it's pretty close to Copenhagen, so the journey to… to ballet school, which became a reality from the age of 7, I think?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That was actually pretty straightforward and easy, but I had the benefit of growing up in a neighborhood with lots of other kids, with beautiful nature. There's even a huge lake you can swim in.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Forest, fields, yeah. So, a very special place, and a space that the… a place that still has a special place in my heart.

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Josephine McGrail: Amazing. And can I just ask, so you… you started at the Royal Danish at 7, or how old were you?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: But before that, how did ballet even enter your world?

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah, that's, I asked myself that question as well.

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Josephine McGrail: It… it's…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It's very closely connected to being a twin.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: First of all, I think… My parents, were not prepared for a double, double trouble.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, that was overwhelming, the first kid, and then you get two at once. So, they were pretty busy and had a lot of responsibilities all of a sudden.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, as soon as we, as kids.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: reached the age where we could do after-school activities, or, you know, you do gymnastics, or soccer, or…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Something to keep us stimulated and, developing.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: we… we would always be doing the same thing. So, for mom and dad, that was the chance to… to park the kids at an activity for an hour, or an hour and a half, and get some stuff done around the house and the home, and yeah, and just get a breather as well.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So we did a bunch of different activities, and then my twin sister, spurred on by her friends, wanted to try ballet. So, naturally, being part of that duo.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I was, also put in ballet classes.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, my parents were like, you know what, boys can do ballet too.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Of course, you're… you're going… you're doing ballet once a week with your sister.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So I started in a small private ballet school.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Actually, the ballet school I have operated myself later, so it's a full circle moment.

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Josephine McGrail: Oh my god, another full circle!

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, it's pretty crazy to think about, and I really liked it. I enjoyed it a lot. I was the only boy at ballet school, so I got a lot of attention, which I…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Must admit, I… I enjoy it, and I had a talent for it.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So my teacher talked to my parents and suggested I

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: auditioned for the Royal Danish Ballet School.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Wow. And the rest is history.

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Josephine McGrail: Wow, I love that.

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Josephine McGrail: You know, it's so interesting, isn't it? That thing of, like, You know, what…

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Josephine McGrail: you know, what brings us, where life takes us. And, you know, so many ingredients had to come together in order for you to arrive at that school.

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Josephine McGrail: And then in order for the teacher at the ballet school to go, hey, you know, your son has talent. And then for your parents, because your parents also had to be open-minded and go, okay, let's give this a go, right? Like, lots of parents might… and again, like you said, they were busy people, they already had their first child with children. They had so much on their plate, right? They could easily have gone like, well, yeah, he may have, but, you know, we'll do that, we'll deal with that later on.

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Josephine McGrail: once there's more time, so many ingredients had to come together so that you could…

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Josephine McGrail: well, essentially end up becoming who you became, but yeah, I loved that beginning, that's beautiful. And then anyway, so you were taken… what about your sister? Sorry for asking.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: My sister hated it.

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Josephine McGrail: No way!

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Ballet was not for her.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: She…

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Josephine McGrail: Oh my god.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I think she managed 2 or 3 lessons, maybe 4?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And then… then she just rebelled against it and was… was… told my parents, I don't want to go, it's not for me, I don't enjoy it.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So we're very different in that sense, that I enjoy this performance, like, being on stage.

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah, yeah.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Having that responsibility, and she… she does not.

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Josephine McGrail: So interesting. And can I also ask, I want to just, like, ask a little bit more about you and your sister's relationship, also as children, or however long you… however far you want to go back, but,

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Josephine McGrail: because, you know, there's some twins… I'm fascinated by twins, and, you know, there's some twins that they kind of end up doing everything together, and they're almost, like, they can finish each other's sentences, and it's this sort of very symbiotic relationship. And I'm sure you're close with your sister, but how was… how would you… how would you describe…

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Josephine McGrail: your relationship, in terms of, sort of… I know you said you're quite different in certain ways. What adjectives, sort of, what words would you place on your relationship?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I think… What's most interesting is that I get to explore life through another lens.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I have someone who is…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: In so many ways, identical to me in terms of timing, and the journey, and when do you embark on your life's journey.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But we have… we have chosen wildly different paths. And, we're also, obviously, a man and a woman, so… so that also,

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: creates two completely different trajectories. So, it's been… it's been…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Interesting to always have this mirror to your own life, and this…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Also a sparring partner in…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And… yeah, looking at the big questions of life, and the decisions you make, and…

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Josephine McGrail: The choices we make as human beings on…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: What to do, and what to prioritize, and yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: Oh my god.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But I think…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: You know, they're reading each other's mind, maybe a bit more when we were younger, but we are vastly different, people, so…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, in that sense, we're like any other sibling couple.

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Josephine McGrail: Of course, absolutely, because… and it's interesting, because that's…

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Josephine McGrail: again, for listeners out there, so me and Alex, we were in the same school at the Royal Danish Ballet for about, I think, just under 7 years, something like that, from when we were… I came in to meet you guys when I was 9, I joined you in 4th grade, and I stayed on just until the beginning of 10th grade. So, yeah, around 6, 6, 6 and a half years, something like that. But when I met you, I… because I do remember you were a twin.

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Josephine McGrail: But it wasn't that obvious twinness, you know, it wasn't that kind of, oh yeah, Alex is a twin, whereas some people you meet and they're twins, and…

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Josephine McGrail: And, like, not only do they look exact, you know, they look the same, but also they're so similar, and with you, I always… I had to remind myself, hey, Alex was a twin, like, it… yeah, I get that, so that makes sense. Okay, but back to you. So you got into the role of Danish.

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Josephine McGrail: at the ripe age of 7, and how was life for a 7-year-old Alex, who all of a sudden was like, oh, now I'm part of this big theater?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I thought it was the most magical thing.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And I still do, actually.

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Josephine McGrail: I love that, yeah.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: 32 years later, I'm still so mesmerized by that world and that environment.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: M…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It's a very different thing, obviously, today than it was when Year 7, but I remember enjoying the fact that it was a different type of school. We had dance classes every morning. We had much smaller classrooms. I think my first two years, we were 4 people in my class.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And then, once you joined, I…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It was a bigger, bigger group, we were around 10 men, yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: Which was a huge group back then.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But… but I remember this… Just being so fascinated with the element of

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Stepping into these magical worlds, being part of ballets with trolls, or fairies, or…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Big drum… big dramatic death scenes, and… and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Putting on fancy costumes and living all of these different lives on stage.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That is actually what still drives me today. I think it's so… so rewarding, and so…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, it's so stimulating for both my own fantasy, but also for an imagination, but also for…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: it, in a way, it serves as a therapeutic role, that I get to… live out…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Big, extreme feelings on stage, of course, within a certain framework, but…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: There's something in allowing that space to flourish that's, very, very special to me.

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Josephine McGrail: Absolutely, I completely understand, and it's…

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Josephine McGrail: You articulate yourself so beautifully in English. I mean, I know, obviously, your English was going to be amazing, but I'm just sitting here quite mesmerized by how you are articulating your experience and your love for that place. And it's beautiful, because for listeners out there, the Royal Danish Ballet is

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Josephine McGrail: incredibly special, especially because as a kid, when you join, the ballet school, as well as the academic school, it's all under one roof. And when I was there with you as kids, at that time, we also had, you know, the acting, the whole acting division was in there, the opera division was in there.

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Josephine McGrail: the orchestra was in there, so we were all together in this beautiful old building, and, you know, the stage was downstairs, and so we grew up really inside that theater, and for me, it's the same, although I was only there for such a few years compared to you.

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Josephine McGrail: it… and I know it's about you today, it's not about me, but I will still say it…

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Josephine McGrail: It completely changed the direction of my entire life.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And, you know, I always look back…

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Josephine McGrail: Onto that time with exactly the same emotions of, like, magic, and love, and emotions, and expression, and freedom, and creativity, and especially just that…

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Josephine McGrail: that that realm, that that way of life is possible, because obviously, you know, now we're grown-ups, and I know that you still live in this world, which is gorgeous, and I live in my own way, but… but I'm also so much, you know, I do a lot of corporates, I work so much with the financial district here in London, and I work so much with people just to sort of remind them that magic is possible, and that feelings are your healing, and all of that, but…

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Josephine McGrail: But, yeah, just to hear you, and for you to put it into words in such a way that is so similar to how I experienced it, it's just really, really special, so it's really gorgeous to hear. Okay, well, let's jump forward in time, because otherwise you and I can sit and reminiscent all day about this. But, so…

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Josephine McGrail: Take us to a time. So, let's say your schooling was until 10th grade, and then after 10th grade, what happens? And this is also exciting for me to hear about you, so…

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Josephine McGrail: Let's say, when you were around, 16, I think, 16 years old, what happened? Where were you at in your life, Alex? Because I know you were about to join the company in that gorgeous special period that takes… does it take 2 years, 3 years? What is it?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I'd say 3 years, but 2 years back then, yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: Okay.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, well, first of all, going through the ballet school, there's also an annual, examination process where.

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Josephine McGrail: where…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Some students don't pass the exam and have to leave the ballet school and return to normal life, quote-unquote.

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Josephine McGrail: Right?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Which is an intense part of an upbringing, both for the people that have to leave, and leave that dream behind, at least within a Royal Danish theater setting.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: it's also… It's also hard for the people that stay behind in terms of what's the… what's the…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah. It instills some sort of impermanence in… in you.

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Josephine McGrail: Mmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That, that it is a fragile thing.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yes, that's… I think that's what I wanted to say about that. But then, at the age of 16, I passed my last school exam and became an apprentice.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And an apprentice is an intense two years where you put the academics aside.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Today, they get an academic degree as well.

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Josephine McGrail: Oh, well done.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Huge, huge plus.

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Josephine McGrail: Oh, wow.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But back then, we just, were implemented more in the adult group of dancers, so the…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: The company, as we call it.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And, two years of intense training following rehearsals, learning a lot of different parts. We were understudies, or… I think you call it swings, maybe.

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Josephine McGrail: In the UK? Yeah.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Where… where you're expected to know more or less every role, and can be put on at a moment's notice. So it's a really intense period, but also…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: The time when you… Get a taste of real ballet dancer life.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And at the same time, I was a teenager, I have still had my… Twin sister to,

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Part of my journey to reflect my journey.

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Josephine McGrail: And she reached the time of going out and going to parties and.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: you know, Amora?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Traditional young person's… Teenage life.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And I remember feeling a bit torn about that.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: There's a lot of training. We work on Saturdays.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: A lot of performances in the evening, so my space for exploring this

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: While the teenage life was a bit more limited.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And that did…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: it did come to a point where I had to make a big decision. I felt very drawn to…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: To having that experience.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Outside.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So I came close to actually quitting.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: One year.

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Josephine McGrail: And how old?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Oh, yeah.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That was right before the apprentice years.

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Josephine McGrail: Oh, wow, so kind of just when I left, almost.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: Like, 16, 17…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah. Okay. I was, considering if this was the right.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: path for me, and I had to think long and hard.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: About it, and decided to… Stick around.

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Josephine McGrail: Heh, yes.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And I think once that decision had fallen into place, I…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I've never looked back, and I've…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I've grown to love my art form and my way of working in ways I could not have foreseen.

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Josephine McGrail: Which is absolutely… oh, it's so beautiful. It's so wonderful to hear, and then I also think…

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Josephine McGrail: you know, just quickly tapping into what you were mentioning. Again, for listeners out there, so yes, it's true what Alex said. And actually, not just throughout the ballet school, that each year we had the ballet exam, because then, even when you get into the company as an apprentice.

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Josephine McGrail: still, throughout those first 3 years, well, now 3 years, back then, 2 years, you still have to pass an exam, right? And then even once you get into the company, there's still… is it after those first 3 years of apprenticeship that you can get your sort of more formal contract that is…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yes.

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Josephine McGrail: It gives you a bit of a lifeline. I don't know how long that one is for, but it's more to… it's more to share that thing that, in a way, like you said, you know, so even just, again, reflecting back to something that everyone can relate to, the fragility of life, the fact that everything… we're here for such a short moment.

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Josephine McGrail: And I think being in that space, and knowing that nothing was ever given, and as much as that's really harsh, like, it's so brutal on one hand, right? It's like, you're like, you, every day, you have this pressure of, like, not just your own pressure to want to do the best and be the best, but also the reality that…

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Josephine McGrail: yes, this can be taken away at any time, and it's not to be brutal, but that is just how life is. And maybe, in a way, maybe it makes you appreciate life, and also that space.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It definitely reminds you that you shouldn't take it for granted, and of course, you have days when you've done your 30-something nutcracker, and you're just fed up with

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: With, with performance after performance.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But I… and especially in the later years, I… I suddenly caught myself walking off stage and thinking.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: what… what happened in there? Did I enjoy myself? Did I… appreciate.

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Josephine McGrail: The moment? Hmm.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And I have made it a really conscious effort to…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: to be more present. Right. Because it is… it is something… That is…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Very special and magical to me.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And… It deserves to be honored and to be… M… Appreciate it.

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Josephine McGrail: Yes. No, I really got that.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: there.

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Josephine McGrail: No, but that's it, and it kind of…

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Josephine McGrail: this line came to me, which was, you know, like, can we live our life in ceremony? And ceremony meaning, can we honor everything we're given? And it's… and I think, especially, obviously, being at the Rolandish Ballet, and the…

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Josephine McGrail: the container and the guidance, but also the rules that you sign up for when you choose to be part of it, right? Because that's a choice. We can always choose differently, right? But when we choose to be there, that's what we've signed up for.

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Josephine McGrail: And I think.

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Josephine McGrail: In many ways, because it's… so it's like, yes, as we both know, you know, I left when I was very young, but I chose to be self-employed my entire life. I didn't have to choose that, right? But I chose it, and in so many ways, it kept me extremely alive, because, you know, again, I could have chosen to go in and be part of whatever, you know, a gorgeous office, I don't know, this or that, but another institution, right?

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Josephine McGrail: And… and in a way, because the way that I choose to live life, like, every day I have to choose life, and every day I have to choose to move forward, because nothing is a given. Everything… not just does life change all the time, but also in terms of how I make an income. And for me, it's always…

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah, it's always kept me very alive. Like, I've never really seen it as pressure, which is interesting, because a lot of other people would look at my lifestyle, or your lifestyle, and go, whoa, how can you live with such, such a level of uncertainty, you know? And for me, it's like, I thrive in the chaos of the unknown.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But when you think about it, it's… uncertainty is part of life. And it's maybe more… it's maybe more visible in some fields, and of course, as a freelancer, you live from job to job, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: As a ballet dancer, you realize that

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: You could get an injury like that, and suddenly your whole way of life is taken away from you, so…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But it could also be… you can be struck with illness or other things in… also in regular jobs, again, quote-unquote.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And you never really know

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: What life has in store for you.

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Josephine McGrail: And I loved it so much, and it's so true, and that was the conclusion I came to as well, because, you know, some people would go like, oh, you know, Josie, you're good at this thing, why don't you come and join us? And…

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Josephine McGrail: And exactly, they were offering, you know, in voted commas, you know, like, security, job security, and what I thought, I was like, but nothing in life is ever secured, and so I would rather do something that makes me feel alive. And then, yes, I need to always be on the move,

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Josephine McGrail: But that's alright. And I think, like you said exactly.

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Josephine McGrail: the way you're living, the way I'm living, is just highlighting the inevitable, which is change. And it's inevitable for all of us as human beings, it's just that we love to…

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Josephine McGrail: we love to live in the illusion that, well, I've got the security of this job, or I have the security of my relationship, or now I'm married, or whatever it is, right? Like, now life is set in stone, and then life comes and takes away your partner to cancer, or, you know, like, sorry for the drama, but, like, that is life.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah. Anything else is kind of like an illusion, but anyway, let's go back to you. So, jumping back into the life of Alexander, so you were going through not a dark night of a soul, but definitely a night at the ripe age of 16, 17, where you were going.

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Josephine McGrail: is this truly what I want? Yeah. And then once you committed, once you were like, no, no, this is…

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Josephine McGrail: I do want this.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: like you said, you know, things started, I guess, in your mind, mentally started to sort of open up and really walk into that space. So, take us into… let's take a little pivot point. Let's go into… so 2011,

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Josephine McGrail: Yes. You became a solist, and you also became a teacher, because I saw they were in the same year, which is very cool, so talk us through some of those moments.

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Josephine McGrail: Did you know… did you know it was going to happen?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Actually, no. I realized that I was getting opportunities, and I was doing exciting parts on stage, and a few main roles, but so were a bunch of other people.

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Josephine McGrail: Around me. Yeah. So…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Aye.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: it really caught me off guard. And of course, I was extremely happy, but I could barely believe it.

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Josephine McGrail: Oh my god!

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It was one morning where the director at the time, Nikolai Huberg, comes into our morning class. We have a class every morning. Call it a class, yeah, a morning training session of ballet.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: M…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Where he comes in, I have an announcement, and then he promoted 4 or 5 of us out of the blue.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And, it has been a dream of mine, For a long time.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But… again, with this uncertainty, and you never really know, and I had…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Found peace in myself with the fact that maybe… maybe that's not in the cards for me.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But, I got lucky, I worked hard for it as well, and then… Yeah, that was a tremendous…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Achievement, and an extremely happy moment for me.

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Josephine McGrail: I absolutely love that, and especially, again, for listeners out there, so,

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Josephine McGrail: you know, for those of you watching the video, you'll absolutely be able to see instead, you know, Alex, you do never… you don't… the one thing you don't come across as is arrogant, or as sort of, like, you know, super self-centered or anything like that, and so…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It's just with so much hum… humbleness, I don't know if you say that, but just this…

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah, humidity, yeah, humility. Just this beautiful kind of, like, wow, me! Like, it's…

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Josephine McGrail: And it's… and you know, especially, like, it's great to have confidence. Confidence is good, but not arrogance, and it's like, it's just so beautiful. I can just see you inside of one of those, like, you know, I don't know, news sale or something like that, one of those studios at the bar, and I can just… I can literally re… like, I can imagine your facial expressions, I can imagine, like, the atmosphere in the studio that morning, and…

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Josephine McGrail: It makes my heart so, so, so happy to hear that you received this, you know, you received this promotion, because it is just…

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Josephine McGrail: so well deserved, not just because of what you were able to do and achieve with your body and all of that, but for you as a person, so it's, it's really special for me to sort of relive it with you, as you're talking about it, so that's amazing.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Appreciate you saying that, yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: Absolutely.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I think my face just dropped, I'm being

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: total disbelief. I'm like, wait, what? What just happened? Oh, wait, how does this feel? Wait…

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Josephine McGrail: What?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Is this real?

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: Oh, I love that, and you know, and it's so… I can see it shining through even now, and this is so many years onwards, which is so wonderful, because, you know, there are moments of achievements that we have in life, where, you know, we work so hard for it, and then finally we get it, and sometimes the feeling can feel empty, can feel alone on top of a mountain, right?

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Josephine McGrail: But this is something where it's like.

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Josephine McGrail: I just was so, you know…

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Josephine McGrail: I'm so happy it happened for you, because I can see you're still enjoying the… just the experience of talking about it. So, amazing!

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Josephine McGrail: And same year, teacher, teacher for the Royal Danish background. And how did that come about?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, I think… I am…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, I became part of the Royal Danish Ballet. I got my first contract in 2004.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And obviously, this love of ballet developed.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And of the institution there.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But alongside of that, that sort of expanded into a love of…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: the Royal theater more broadly, and the… and the many different departments working there, and other art forms, and all the different processes that go on behind

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Behind the… the curtain.

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Josephine McGrail: Mmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, I very quickly…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Had this, like, burning curiosity to understand more, and got involved with all kinds of

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: extra projects. I've gone… gone to schools all around Denmark to talk about ballet and put together a…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Program, like, explaining what… what ballet is for kids, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: More administrative work, and then…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: as part of that exploration, I was also asked to teach at the

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: At the ballet school first, and later at the company for a while.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, I think all of these extra jobs have always been… part of… Out of me.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: There's, like, a really deep, deeply, anchored curiosity, and… Desire to grow and learn.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I hope I'll never lose.

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Josephine McGrail: I'm sure you won't.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, so good.

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Josephine McGrail: I mean, Alex, you know what? Honestly, it's like, you know, this is who you are. Like, if you… it's kind of interesting, because, my fiance, he's from America, and, you know, we were talking about maybe spending some more time in the US, and all of this, and my, sort of, my fear that popped up was like, oh.

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Josephine McGrail: But what if, you know, what if I won't, you know, what if I won't be able to, like, connect with lots of people, and have lots of movement, and then I was like, well, of course I will, because it's who I am. So it's like, you can't just, you know, you're not gonna be… like, we're changing all the time, yes, but, like, if you are a curious person.

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Josephine McGrail: you will always be a curious person, you know? If you're a passionate person, you might lose a little passion if you're going through a challenging time in your life, but, like, passion is who you are, you know? So, of course, you will always continue that, and I think it.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But it does come… I gotta say, it does come with some…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Some difficult transitional moments of, like.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I feel I've already lived 5 different lives at the Royal theater, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: You learn something, you have to let some things go for… in order to make room for something else, so there is also a death and a mourning process in all of these, opportunities and in…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: the growth mindset and the learning mindset. So, it's not all fun and games. It's not just…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: about acquiring skills and knowledge. It is also about

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: saying goodbye to things. It's also about

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Really feeling what drives you forward, and what gives you, energy and purpose.

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Josephine McGrail: 100%, and you know, it's actually really interesting, because I don't know if you're into astrology, and again, for listeners out there, if you are not, if we just look at astrology as an archetype, so you're Pisces.

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Josephine McGrail: As you know. And Pisces are a very karmic sign. They are represented by the number 8 as well, and it's all about endings and beginnings. It's all about what are we ready to close to create the space for the new. So it's like that figure 8, right? And it's… and so what you're just saying is just so archetypical for you. And also, another thing about Pisces is… is obviously that thing of, you know, you go deep, you go

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Josephine McGrail: deep into the understanding of the systems that surrounds you.

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Josephine McGrail: so the fact that you were like, yes, I was in the organism, the micro… the macroorganism of the Royal Danish, but I didn't stay just in my one division, I started to research into the other compartments, right? Like, again, archetypical of…

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Josephine McGrail: being a Pisces, so for me, I just want to sit here and be like, yay, you're on point astrologically! No, but that is true. And what are, if I can ask.

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Josephine McGrail: What are some of the challenges that you personally have been… it doesn't have to be about a specific challenge, but maybe what is the feeling that's been the most challenging in terms of the letting go?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: At times for you?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Well, I am in one of those processes right now, because I am embarking on my last year as a ballet dancer. This has been my identity for 32 years, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: We have state rules here in Denmark that say that at the age of 40, you can no longer be a ballet dancer.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Oh, I have to quickly ask, is that actually a state rule?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, it's something about pay scale and how.

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Josephine McGrail: No way, really?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: Okay, okay, fine.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It's very, it's very anchored in… In, in a… in a system.

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Josephine McGrail: Okay.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, I'm, I, of course, am in that process of saying goodbye to the active stage life.

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Josephine McGrail: Mmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I'm also, on top of that, thinking about, okay.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: In a way, I have to make the first formal choice.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: about what to do next. And since I was 7, there has been this path of ballet, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And someone else will organize your day and tell you what performances to do, and what…

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Josephine McGrail: Roles to learn, and how to do them, and so everything is sort of…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: This straight path ahead of you.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And now, for the first time in my life, I…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I found myself in the situation of having to define my own path more.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: As I mentioned, I'm… I'm a bit unique in the sense that I have done so many things in the past and still do.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But I've also been through a process of Closing things down, and… really thinking about…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: not what I'm good at, but actually what ignites my fire, and what drives me as a human.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And that's, I'm really happy that things seem to be falling into place, and that my future looks like something

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: that nourishes me and really speaks to… to the talents and the interests that I have.

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Josephine McGrail: Mmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But it has been… it has been a difficult… journey to… Unravel all of that.

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Josephine McGrail: No, I really, really understand that. I absolutely understand that, and…

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Josephine McGrail: there's a moment here of me thinking. I really get that. And you're so right, because in the experience you've had, as long as you continue to work hard.

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Josephine McGrail: And continue to, you know, thrive in… commit fully. And by committing, we're also sacrificing, right? So it's that thing of whatever we let in, when we let something into our life, we let something else go, right? So you've been fully committed, you've been a thousand percent all in into this gorgeous part of life called the Royal Danish Ballet and… and friends, amongst other things, right? And now you're here in this other, you know.

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Josephine McGrail: And also, for listeners out there, we are now in September, and you will turn 40 next year, in February, is it?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: March 1st.

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Josephine McGrail: March 1st, March 1st. Okay, so there's still a while, but obviously, considering that you've had your entire life there, in fact, you've been there since you were 7 years old,

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Josephine McGrail: I really understand that that is a very, very big deal. And also, the whole, like you said, is an active dancer on stage, right? So…

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Josephine McGrail: obviously, you can still be part of some stage productions, I'm sure, but the active part, no, I understand that. Absolutely. What has been one of the, or, well, how have you… how have you been able to cope with that?

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Josephine McGrail: What have you been doing?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I think it's also about discovering, as you say, like, there's only room for so much in a life, and with all the work… work elements that I've prioritized in my 30s and even 20s.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I also see what the… the…

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Josephine McGrail: Sacrifices have been.

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Josephine McGrail: And I am…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: embarking on a part of my life where I… I want to make more room for my social life.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I want to make more room for my, yeah, my private life and for hobbies. Imagine having a hobby.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, so… so that's definitely also…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: a thing. And more free time in general, to enjoy life, and enjoy nature, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And, recharge more. I'm… I am older, and I need to recharge a bit longer than I did when I was in my 20s.

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Josephine McGrail: I love this, I love this, Alex. So, can I ask you, tell us about 3 things, 3 moments in your life that you feel really proud of, 3 moments, 3 moments, 3 memories that you feel really proud of.

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Josephine McGrail: Obviously, you already shared the 2011 becoming a soloist.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yes, that's one of them, for sure.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I am extremely… I've actually just,

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: had an experience that was… I'm super proud of. I staged my first ballet.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yep.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And that's completely new territory. Of course, I've worked with dancers and artists before, but being in charge of a full

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: of a full work of art on stage, and making sure to teach the steps, and motivate, and convey the story, and… yeah. So, and that premiered on…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: A week ago, on Saturday.

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Josephine McGrail: Congratulations!

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It has been the most rewarding experience, and actually surprised me how much I enjoyed it.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It really connected me with a new Sense of meaning, fullness, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I thought I did a pretty good job, and gave me a ton of energy, and…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It's also been well received, of course, that's not always a given, but… Yeah, that has really…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: opened my eyes to, another path, perhaps, or something that I would love to see if I can incorporate in my

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: In my new post-dancer life.

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Josephine McGrail: I love that, and I especially love it because I saw you this summer, right? And I remember you were saying, you were like, I'm about to do this thing.

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Josephine McGrail: And I've never done this thing before. And, you know, and you're like, but I'm sure I'll work it out somehow. There was some, like, you said something along those lines, which I love. And even that I thought, was hilarious, because, like, as kids, like, I've always had that attitude as well. I was just like, well, I'll somehow work it out. But it's so beautiful to be on the other side of it now, and now hearing that you're actually saying, sharing this as one of your proudest moments, so that's…

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Josephine McGrail: just so beautiful, I'm so happy for you. Amazing.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And of course, it's an existing work that I had to stage, but then, of course, I can't just take on that.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: part of challenge, so I had to create two new scenes that I've created myself, and… yeah. I had moments thinking, why, Alex? Like, there's no…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: there's no reason for that. Well, there is… there's an artistic reason, but it's also a gamble when it's your first production, but yeah. But somehow, that's also typical of me to… to be like, okay, I can do it, but can I do it even more?

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Josephine McGrail: Right.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Or even better.

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Josephine McGrail: Right.

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Josephine McGrail: And I loved that, and I loved it, because this just… there was a glimpse of your… of another personality side of you coming through there, where you said, okay, why, Alex? Like, why… why take the gamble? Why… why… you know, why do it in a way that there is a risk, whereas this is my first production, this is the first time of me staging this whole thing. I could just do it the way that, you know, others have done before, and we know that it's gonna work. And the fact that you

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Josephine McGrail: You chose the path less… less… less traveled.

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Josephine McGrail: I love that. And again, just, like, because it shows how much you know yourself.

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Josephine McGrail: you know, understanding that not only that, okay, you're good at what you do, even if it's something new, you still have confidence, you're gonna do, you know, a reasonably good job, but it also shows that for your own personal fulfillment, like, at this point in your life, you have to do it in a way that deeply inspires you personally.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah.

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Josephine McGrail: And, and again, that just reflects so much on you.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I've certainly learned that I need to… when I… when I feel that creative fire, or when I feel that…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: deep sense of, okay, I must do this.

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Josephine McGrail: bad.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: To listen to it and follow it, because that is what…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Beats me, and that is what…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: makes me wake up with a giant smile on my face every morning and… and handle the tasks and challenges of the day in the best way. That's really my battery. And then I feel… you mentioned it a little bit, but I want to say that I feel…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: very lucky. I think I have maybe more than two, but I can think of two, what I would call gifts.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: that… that I… that live in me as a person, and one of them is that I…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: this extra battery.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I have a capacity that's pretty…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: intense. I very rarely get burnt out.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And I can usually always… find that extra energy that I need.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And then the other side is what you mentioned, is… I kind of… I like calling it, like, a naive optimism.

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Josephine McGrail: Just saying I'm like…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, I can probably… yeah, I can… I have no idea how to do that, but yeah, I can probably figure out how to do that.

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Josephine McGrail: Right!

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And then that's… that's all I need, because then, oh, then it's just a process of, like, identifying the steps, and then doing them one by one, and then we'll get there, and…

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah, the flip side of that is sometimes I'm a bit of a time optimist.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: that I think… does not take so long? Suddenly, it's, like, 10 times as… as,

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Comprehensive, and yeah, best.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Then I lean on my battery, my extra battery, to get it done anyways.

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Josephine McGrail: Absolutely love it, Alex, that sounds amazing, so good. And I love this extra battery, and it's funny because…

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Josephine McGrail: and again, this is another similarity between us, because I have so much energy. But it's also… and for listeners out there, if you're sitting there in your life and you're like, oh, okay, good for you guys, but I have, like, zero energy, I think…

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Josephine McGrail: what energizes you is what inspires you. And so, when you're living your life, and that doesn't mean, listen, like, you know, we're all human beings, right? So, Alex, obviously you have lots of moments as well, where it's like, okay, come on, let's go do this thing, right? Even if you choose to live your life involved with projects, people, places, experiences that actually energizes you, but…

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Josephine McGrail: But still, overall, If you…

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Josephine McGrail: when you're choosing to engage with things that inspires you, like, you talked about your passion, or your sense of, like, you know, igniting your flame, right? It's like…

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Josephine McGrail: when you have that, and you do that, it's like, even if at times… of course, there's challenges, et cetera, or even at times, you're like, oh god, time management, like, God, I thought we could do this in 2 hours, and now we're in hour 10, and whoa, but here we go, right? But, you know…

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Josephine McGrail: Whereas you could do something that maybe on paper looks amazing, and maybe it was only 2 hours, but you are literally burned out, because it is so… I think it's all about alignment. You're so out of alignment with what you actually came to this planet to do, and I'm not talking about it in a spiritual sense, but just in a sense of.

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Josephine McGrail: What makes you feel alive?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah. You know, and I.

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Josephine McGrail: I had this thought, like, I don't know, a while ago, and I was teaching, and it just came to me. I was like, you know, guys, we're not here to think life.

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Josephine McGrail: We're here to feel alive.

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Josephine McGrail: And it's just this thing, because everything, like, what you're talking about as well, is it's a feeling. It comes from an inner feeling, right? Like, your body feels it, and you can't… you can't fake it. If you're not feeling it, you're not feeling it. It's like a relationship, right? Whatever it is, like… but we're not here to… so we can use the brain, and we can use the brain, and, you know, use the brain, work things out, so to try and create an everyday that feels is

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Josephine McGrail: Inspiring to you as possible, but…

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Josephine McGrail: it has to be in alignment with that inner fire, so it's the same thing, that you're like, I have this extra battery. I've never thought about it like that, but I like… that's a really good way of saying it, because.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: You're so right.

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Josephine McGrail: Yeah.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: You're so right, and yeah, and yes, of course, I'm not… I'm not fueled by joy and…

401
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And creativity and humor all the time, or whatever it may be.

402
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: There's… there are definitely also moments where… where you hunker down, and it's pure duty and discipline and… and dry getting…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Shit done, sorry, about the language. Fine. But,

404
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But I think, yeah, what you're saying makes me think that

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Beneath all of that, and beneath the energies of different days, there is…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I feel there is a purpose that's guiding me like a beacon.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

408
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: whether it's driven… whether I'm going there from a joyous place or through duty, it helps me that… that I'm so strongly, tethered.

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Josephine McGrail: Hmm…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: to… To… to that beacon, and that… Yeah, passion.

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Josephine McGrail: Right, and that's it, and the passion and the fire, that's all the emotions. It's not just the joy and the this and the dead. It's also… it's allowing oneself to feel, right? So there's times where, again, because life is life, so you might be, for a living, doing something that is fully in alignment with you, but then you're going through a personal, you know, like you, like, okay, what am I gonna do next year? That's a really challenging place to be in. So then that feeling of fear and

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Josephine McGrail: out, and who am I, and whatever else, like, all of those emotions.

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Josephine McGrail: But they're still fueling your fire. So as long as you're allowing yourself to feel it, right?

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Josephine McGrail: then that will still… then, when you're feeling, you're still in movement, and when you're in movement, there's change, and then you're in a good spot, even if it feels super uneasy at times. So, I love that thing about the extra battery, and actually, that's not a bad thing, or it's not too much, it's just…

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Josephine McGrail: Like, I loved it, you're like, this is what I'm proud of, I love my extra battery, and I'm actually… sorry, listeners out there for making about me and Alex, but hey, I'm gonna use that myself, and I'm gonna be like, I love my extra battery, I love my extra fire.

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Josephine McGrail: Did you have one more?

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Josephine McGrail: Another friend…

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: somewhat.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: cloud memory.

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Josephine McGrail: A proud memory can be anything.

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I think… yeah.

422
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I've had to… I've been, as you mentioned, I've been organizing this summer… summer incentive at the Royal Finnish Ballet.

423
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: for many, many years, and I think…

424
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: there was one… now I don't remember the specific year, but there was one year where I felt that it flipped from a…

425
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: From a small initiative into something that was… M…

426
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That got extremely popular, and that had become a super well-organized machine, and, like, established as as a…

427
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That's an important initiative, both in… in Denmark, but also internationally.

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Josephine McGrail: Globally, right?

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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I remember having our final performance on one of the theater's main stages.

430
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: With a full auditorium full of extremely happy parents, friends, and 200 students on stage.

431
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And just thinking, okay, wow, I made this. I made this happen. I took something that was…

432
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: A bit more small… a bit smaller, and… and managed to develop and grow it into,

433
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2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Into, yeah, into what it became.

434
00:47:42.750 --> 00:47:43.420
Josephine McGrail: I love that.

435
00:47:43.420 --> 00:47:46.900
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I'm extremely proud of that as well. And actually, if I can mention a fourth thing.

436
00:47:46.900 --> 00:47:47.679
Josephine McGrail: Oh, please do!

437
00:47:47.680 --> 00:47:54.839
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: God. I'm also really proud of the journey I'm going through now, of… Of, like, figuring out

438
00:47:55.010 --> 00:47:56.230
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: who I am.

439
00:47:56.820 --> 00:48:01.459
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: After this magical world of dance, and… and going through

440
00:48:01.740 --> 00:48:06.219
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: The dark night of the soul of, narrowing in and figuring out.

441
00:48:06.880 --> 00:48:08.099
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: What's next?

442
00:48:08.860 --> 00:48:17.009
Josephine McGrail: It's so beautiful. When you said that, I just saw you walking in this dark tunnel, and then I saw your skin, sorry, it's a bit gross, but work with me, guys.

443
00:48:17.010 --> 00:48:26.910
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And so your skin, almost like a snake, you know, the snake has to release its skin for this new thing, this new being, and it is like, it is an outgrowing of your old skin, right?

444
00:48:26.910 --> 00:48:33.580
Josephine McGrail: And like you said, it is a death. And, you know, we are cyclical beings. We live in cycles.

445
00:48:34.470 --> 00:48:53.850
Josephine McGrail: and again, we love to live in the illusion that we don't live in cycles and that death doesn't exist, right? And we hold on to what we love dearly, you know, we meet another person, we're like, oh, you're so nice, don't have a leave, right? And we all know that the more we cling, the more that cling gets suffocating for ourself and for everyone else, and so it is this

446
00:48:53.850 --> 00:48:56.629
Josephine McGrail: Big release, and it is so exciting to see

447
00:48:56.630 --> 00:49:06.010
Josephine McGrail: Well, it's exciting as a friend to observe what is coming through through you, and of course, for you, it's obviously, like, the stage in between is always muddy.

448
00:49:06.630 --> 00:49:10.050
Josephine McGrail: But exciting, and, you know, just here supporting you.

449
00:49:10.420 --> 00:49:15.400
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I wanna say something also to the people listening, because…

450
00:49:16.260 --> 00:49:24.170
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I definitely feel like a lot of things are aligning for me now, and a lot of my… I'm starting to reap the fruits of

451
00:49:24.610 --> 00:49:26.330
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: of things I…

452
00:49:26.540 --> 00:49:35.350
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I started years… years ago, and never knowing that that would happen. So, I'm in an extremely positive and,

453
00:49:35.690 --> 00:49:39.269
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Optimistic place about my future path, but…

454
00:49:39.420 --> 00:49:44.229
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I… I just also want to say that that was not the case 6 months ago.

455
00:49:45.450 --> 00:49:46.940
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That, that,

456
00:49:47.340 --> 00:49:55.789
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: 6 months ago, I was almost stuck in what you said about being stuck between your thinking mind and your feeling heart, or body, or stomach.

457
00:49:55.790 --> 00:49:56.710
Josephine McGrail: Yeah, yeah.

458
00:49:56.710 --> 00:49:58.280
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Wherever you feel.

459
00:49:58.460 --> 00:50:04.580
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And… And having to come to terms with, I can't think out, I can't.

460
00:50:04.750 --> 00:50:06.160
Josephine McGrail: Think my way out of this.

461
00:50:06.160 --> 00:50:15.280
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: the perfect plan for this. I have to go through something that I don't fully understand, accept some sort of path to also

462
00:50:15.640 --> 00:50:19.139
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: unveil itself for me.

463
00:50:19.250 --> 00:50:20.310
Josephine McGrail: And…

464
00:50:20.430 --> 00:50:23.170
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That's… it's difficult to trust.

465
00:50:23.290 --> 00:50:27.479
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: A process that's so uncertain and so full of doubts, and…

466
00:50:27.860 --> 00:50:36.150
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Also, possibilities can also be stressful or, cause for… rumination.

467
00:50:36.570 --> 00:50:38.800
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But, yeah.

468
00:50:39.360 --> 00:50:44.780
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I encourage people to… to try and make that shift, and accepting that… that…

469
00:50:45.650 --> 00:50:52.930
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That, there is a plan somehow. And, yeah, let go of trying to figure everything out all the time.

470
00:50:53.250 --> 00:50:55.980
Josephine McGrail: I really love that. We have to lift the question.

471
00:50:56.020 --> 00:51:00.690
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah, I love that. That's beautifully said. Thank you so much, Alex, I love that.

472
00:51:00.690 --> 00:51:06.569
Josephine McGrail: An undead happy note, my next question for you is, What is your greatest fear?

473
00:51:08.400 --> 00:51:08.940
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Oof.

474
00:51:09.460 --> 00:51:15.059
Josephine McGrail: I know. We came to the dark side.

475
00:51:15.200 --> 00:51:22.559
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I definitely have… I definitely have a side to me, like, a part of a pattern that's…

476
00:51:23.090 --> 00:51:28.780
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Wanting to be… Accepted and, acknowledged.

477
00:51:28.890 --> 00:51:32.699
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And I guess the fear is, Not being good enough.

478
00:51:33.110 --> 00:51:39.919
Josephine McGrail: Wow, whoa. Oh my god, Alex, my heart is like… oh god, I could nearly cry on this side.

479
00:51:39.940 --> 00:51:45.940
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Oh, wow, thank you so much for your honesty, wow. Oh, god, I got so emotional here, wow.

480
00:51:46.520 --> 00:51:50.189
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And part of this unraveling journey is also…

481
00:51:50.780 --> 00:52:02.739
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: yes, there is definitely the positive and the curious side of, like, yes, wanting to learn a lot of things, but there has also been a catalyst underneath it that was, like, I should probably…

482
00:52:03.580 --> 00:52:05.700
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Learn all of this, or, like…

483
00:52:07.030 --> 00:52:13.660
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I need to be better, I need to learn more. So that's something I'm letting go of. Or…

484
00:52:14.040 --> 00:52:22.289
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That is evolving into a self-acceptance of, well, you are… there's not enough hours in the day to master everything.

485
00:52:23.080 --> 00:52:23.750
Josephine McGrail: I love that.

486
00:52:23.750 --> 00:52:25.799
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And we can only do the best that we can.

487
00:52:25.800 --> 00:52:45.130
Josephine McGrail: Absolutely. But it was interesting, this thing of how you said maybe it was the capital… maybe it was the pivot point, maybe it was the instigator, like, maybe my curiosity and my need to explore all these fields and to kind of understand all of these… not control, but, hmm, master all these different things.

488
00:52:46.130 --> 00:53:03.959
Josephine McGrail: was that also instigated not just by the curiosity, but was it instigated by fear? Like, below curiosity, was that fear, and was that fear of not just not being good enough, but also what equals not being good enough? Does that mean… let me ask you, what does it mean to not be good enough? What is the deeper one than that?

489
00:53:04.380 --> 00:53:05.030
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Hmm.

490
00:53:10.760 --> 00:53:15.349
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I guess… I guess underneath that is, like, being rejected as the person I am, somehow.

491
00:53:18.130 --> 00:53:18.900
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yeah.

492
00:53:19.050 --> 00:53:27.910
Josephine McGrail: And it's interesting, because it's like, on one hand, if we just look at your life rationally, right, sorry, like, thank you so much for going into this deep dive with me, on you.

493
00:53:28.320 --> 00:53:40.810
Josephine McGrail: But on one hand, we can go, well, you know, as a human being, this is a very human emotion. I always… I think it was actually during COVID this sort of occurred to me. So, you know, across space and time.

494
00:53:41.010 --> 00:53:54.870
Josephine McGrail: And not just because of, okay, you grew up in an institution, you chose to be part of a complex, as we all know, where, you know, every single day something could change, as it does always in life, right? But also, but deeper than that, you know?

495
00:53:54.920 --> 00:54:19.400
Josephine McGrail: across space and time, in all cultures, in the good old days, the worst thing we could do to a human being, it wasn't actually to kill them, because then life was over. It might have been a painful death, but life was over, right? Wherever we go to next, whatever people believe. The worst thing for a human being was not even to not have food. The worst thing for a human being was to not belong. It was to get kicked out. It was to be kicked out away from the tribe.

496
00:54:19.480 --> 00:54:33.060
Josephine McGrail: A way… because, essentially, that did mean death, but it meant a lonely death. And it's just so interesting, that thing of, like, so the fear of not being good enough, because that would be the thing, the fear of being rejected, rejected away from what?

497
00:54:33.150 --> 00:54:50.370
Josephine McGrail: rejected away from a sense of belonging. Our deepest need as a human being is actually to belong, is to be… yes, it's happiness and all the risk, but it's to belong, to be part of something, to be all one. And then you have the all one, and you break those up, and then you have a… well, you have all one.

498
00:54:50.470 --> 00:55:14.700
Josephine McGrail: And then you have alone, right? From those two words, we can form the word alone, but it used to be all one. So it's that, like, your fear is so human, like, it's so humane, like, it's a… it's something everyone can relate to, this fear of rejection. And then, of course, even more highlighted, because you chose the institution, you chose the life that you chose. And interestingly enough, I just want to highlight this for myself, because I remember

499
00:55:14.830 --> 00:55:27.470
Josephine McGrail: you know, a few years ago, I was running around 500 editions, 500 castings, and all of a sudden, I stopped, literally in the street in London. I was running to the next, I was like, gotta get to the next thing, get the next job, and I stopped, and I was like.

500
00:55:27.770 --> 00:55:28.930
Josephine McGrail: Oh my god.

501
00:55:29.820 --> 00:55:46.819
Josephine McGrail: ever since I was a kid, like, I left the Royal Danish Ballet, and I'm still wanting to be chosen, like… and I don't have to anymore! Like, I could choose a completely different lifestyle where I don't have to go in and get chosen every day. And yet I didn't, right? Like, it's…

502
00:55:46.820 --> 00:55:51.590
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I recognized something very deep in that, like, something in my stomach just let go when you said that.

503
00:55:51.720 --> 00:55:53.220
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So, yeah.

504
00:55:53.500 --> 00:55:56.479
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That's… it's so true, that… that thing of…

505
00:55:57.240 --> 00:55:58.889
Josephine McGrail: Wanting to be chosen.

506
00:55:59.520 --> 00:56:04.989
Josephine McGrail: And not from a space of vanity, not from a space of, like.

507
00:56:05.120 --> 00:56:16.960
Josephine McGrail: you know, ego, but from this really deep sense of, we just want to belong, you know? We really… like, that's such a humane thing, and it's beautiful, and there's nothing wrong with it.

508
00:56:16.960 --> 00:56:41.900
Josephine McGrail: We just want to belong, and then that thing of, you know, can we choose to choose ourself? Can we choose to… I mean, you know my lady's book is called Fall in Love With You, right? Can we choose… can I choose… let's make it super personal. Can I choose to no longer reject part of me? So, I'm lovable, or I'm good, or I'm nice when I achieve XYZ, or when I express certain parts of myself, and I suppress other parts of myself, right?

509
00:56:41.900 --> 00:56:48.620
Josephine McGrail: can I choose to… To… to decide, to try, to make it my intention, to make peace with…

510
00:56:48.730 --> 00:56:50.390
Josephine McGrail: All aspects of me.

511
00:56:50.520 --> 00:57:00.060
Josephine McGrail: And it sounds like a similar experience for you, right? You know, can we, you know… so that thing of going back to the original question, which was, what is your greatest fear?

512
00:57:00.930 --> 00:57:01.820
Josephine McGrail: Hmm.

513
00:57:03.470 --> 00:57:05.720
Josephine McGrail: Then we had a moment. Let's take a breath.

514
00:57:08.600 --> 00:57:09.680
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Shake it off.

515
00:57:10.820 --> 00:57:15.579
Josephine McGrail: Alex, I have one more question. I actually have two more questions for you. Do you have another 5 minutes?

516
00:57:15.580 --> 00:57:17.999
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Yes. You okay? You're not in a rush?

517
00:57:18.820 --> 00:57:35.120
Josephine McGrail: I do have some plans, but 5 more minutes is… 5 more minutes? Okay, amazing. I'm going to ask you, so from your greatest fear, let's jump into your greatest joy. So, Alex, what is bringing you great joy in your life at this moment in time?

518
00:57:41.800 --> 00:57:44.919
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But it's bringing me great joy.

519
00:57:45.530 --> 00:57:51.720
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I… I'm so fueled by curiosity.

520
00:57:52.230 --> 00:57:53.789
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: On so many levels.

521
00:57:54.070 --> 00:58:03.499
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It's… it can be… practically and work-related, but I'm also very… Fueled by curiosity about myself.

522
00:58:03.970 --> 00:58:05.429
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: At the moment, so…

523
00:58:06.010 --> 00:58:12.109
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: it's not always easy, but it does give me a lot of joy when I discover something, or when I'm

524
00:58:12.530 --> 00:58:16.320
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: when I dive… dive into the machinery.

525
00:58:16.750 --> 00:58:20.380
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: In whatever aspect. And I'm also…

526
00:58:21.040 --> 00:58:36.269
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I'm also learning that all of the experiences that I have with me, and all the skills that I maybe have not always been conscious about, but there's so much in my… in my history, in my past, that is now…

527
00:58:36.810 --> 00:58:48.600
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Bubbling up to the surface and actually helping me Explore, develop, yeah move forward.

528
00:58:49.730 --> 00:58:55.239
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So that's, that's… yeah, that brings me a lot of joy and comfort.

529
00:58:55.820 --> 00:59:19.500
Josephine McGrail: I love that, and it's such a gorgeous, you know, what you chose to share with us is just so beautiful, because, you know, it's about you, and you can never run away from you, so you might as well start to get curious on you. I really love that, and it's also, it's not some external factor. Again, it's not something that can be taken away from you. Like, what you chose is something that's bringing you great joy, something that is always with you, because, you know, it is you.

530
00:59:19.500 --> 00:59:22.770
Josephine McGrail: So I think that's a really, that's a really potent one.

531
00:59:22.770 --> 00:59:27.589
Josephine McGrail: Finally, I always ask people this, and I'm so curious to what you're going to share with us.

532
00:59:27.590 --> 00:59:30.870
Josephine McGrail: One more thing that brings me joy. Always, please, yes.

533
00:59:31.300 --> 00:59:32.050
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: people.

534
00:59:32.790 --> 00:59:48.949
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: People, I love relations, I love connecting with other people, I love being part of a community, so I guess it's also the flip side to the fear question from before, but, I get so much energy and joy from getting to know other people and feeling

535
00:59:49.280 --> 00:59:53.100
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: connected. Yeah. There's also curiosity about other people.

536
00:59:53.370 --> 00:59:53.940
Josephine McGrail: I love that.

537
00:59:53.940 --> 00:59:55.539
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I had to throw that one in there.

538
00:59:55.540 --> 01:00:09.710
Josephine McGrail: Let's pop it in there. And also, and I hope you will like this one, just in terms of all the questions, because you have a really incredible mind, and a mind that questions a lot of things, and like you said, this thing of, well.

539
01:00:09.800 --> 01:00:33.810
Josephine McGrail: it's wonderful to have lots of opportunity in one's life, but on the other hand, it also means, well, now there's more pressure to choose the right choice, like, what is the right, in inverted commas, choice, right? And I often sort of dabble with the same thing within myself, because I can see the opportunities and the paths in so many different directions, and it can absolutely feel very overwhelming, hence why we… you and I came to the conclusion of, like, let's lift the question, right?

540
01:00:34.000 --> 01:00:49.880
Josephine McGrail: It's a physical experience, you know, drop out of the head, drop into the body, what does the body see, and let's follow that step by step, even if we can't figure out the path mentally, let's feel our way, like, let's dance our way through it, right? But something else that came to me the other day, which is, you know.

541
01:00:50.270 --> 01:01:04.290
Josephine McGrail: across, you know, in the sacred scriptures, we always have the wisdom, the knowing that says, you know, oh, you have all the answers inside yourself. Well, that's all well and good, and then something else came to me, which is we have to acknowledge, because everything in life has

542
01:01:04.290 --> 01:01:11.390
Josephine McGrail: an up and a down, a black and a white, you know, yin-yang, that you're Pisces, you have your two fishes, it's not just one fish, right? There's two, funnily enough, like.

543
01:01:11.390 --> 01:01:12.100
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: That's an idea.

544
01:01:12.100 --> 01:01:25.490
Josephine McGrail: Right, polarity, that's the polarity. So what we have to acknowledge, when we say we hold all the answers, we must embrace and accept the fact and acknowledge the fact that we also hold all the questions inside of. We hold both.

545
01:01:26.100 --> 01:01:29.320
Josephine McGrail: And to honor the fact that we sit with both.

546
01:01:29.480 --> 01:01:53.140
Josephine McGrail: that having all the questions is actually not a negative thing. It's only negative if we attach that story that, fuck, I've got too many questions in my head, right? Well, I have the question, that means I will hold the answer. If I didn't have the question, I wouldn't be able to hold the answer. You know, one cannot exist without the other, so just that thing of… for me, it started to… that helped me to actually make friends with my mind, to make friends with the fact that

547
01:01:53.140 --> 01:02:03.040
Josephine McGrail: Oh, God, there's a lot of questions in my head right now, right? Yeah. Yeah, but without the question, the answer can't arrive. The opportunity for an answer can't arrive. If I don't have the question.

548
01:02:03.460 --> 01:02:08.029
Josephine McGrail: there's no change, there's no movement. Yeah, anyway.

549
01:02:08.030 --> 01:02:16.859
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: And also, also, like, walking the talk is, like, searching your… searching for your answers. It's not just a matter of getting out of your head and

550
01:02:17.000 --> 01:02:35.260
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: and switching to… to feelings, you're still gonna make mistakes, and you're still gonna, go back and forth, and… and fuck things up, and then you learn something new, or get surprised, and it's not a… it's not a quick fix. It's a… it's a journey, and it's,

551
01:02:36.130 --> 01:02:41.740
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: But, yeah, I encourage… People out there to be curious about the journey along the way.

552
01:02:42.270 --> 01:02:43.370
Josephine McGrail: I love that.

553
01:02:43.720 --> 01:02:48.550
Josephine McGrail: Final question for you, Alex, and then I promise to let you go, for now.

554
01:02:49.830 --> 01:03:01.830
Josephine McGrail: In the wisdom that you sit in now, so 39 years on this planet, 39 incredible years with ups and downs, in and outs, proud moments, sad moments, all of it.

555
01:03:01.940 --> 01:03:14.040
Josephine McGrail: the rawness of the human heart experience. If you had just one or two, knowing you, or two soul messages for humanity, what would they be?

556
01:03:15.810 --> 01:03:22.120
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: I think I've… Almost already answered it, but connect to your curiosity.

557
01:03:22.360 --> 01:03:23.700
Josephine McGrail: allow…

558
01:03:24.330 --> 01:03:30.960
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It's, it can be a safe space, even though curiosity is not… An answer?

559
01:03:32.360 --> 01:03:39.239
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: It is a process to… learned deeper and understanding more. And… it has…

560
01:03:40.210 --> 01:03:45.980
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: been a life companion for me, always, and I hope it always will be.

561
01:03:46.240 --> 01:03:50.670
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: So… That would be my… my message.

562
01:03:50.990 --> 01:03:56.130
Josephine McGrail: Oh my god, I love that so much. And just to attach to that one…

563
01:03:56.330 --> 01:04:14.229
Josephine McGrail: If we're looking for an answer, it's final, it's closure, it's kind of something finished. That means there's no more movement, that means there's no change, that means there's no life, it's kind of a death. So sometimes getting an answer is a conclusion, it can feel nice, it's a release, but it also actually stops that process, it stops the movement.

564
01:04:14.260 --> 01:04:17.859
Josephine McGrail: Living the question, living in curiosity.

565
01:04:17.940 --> 01:04:21.740
Josephine McGrail: means that there's always flow. And where there's flow.

566
01:04:21.870 --> 01:04:36.890
Josephine McGrail: there's energy, there is life, there's possibility, and that's always a good space. Alex, this has been absolutely incredible. I could speak to you all day. I wish you all the best, and thank you so much for taking the time to share your gorgeous, gorgeous world with us.

567
01:04:36.890 --> 01:04:41.519
2 Alexander Stæger - Kgl. Teater: Thank you for having me, thank you for having me. It's been, it's been such a nice experience.

568
01:04:41.680 --> 01:04:47.099
Josephine McGrail: Thank you so much, listeners out there, have the best day, and see you soon.