Barbara Cook at 80

"What I aim for, and what I think most actors and singers aim for, is those moments when you fly. They’re unexplainable. The feeling is so, so deeply wonderful. But that doesn’t happen all the time. So the rest of the time you depend on your technique. You depend on your experience. I think very often when I don’t think I did very well, people come back and say, 'This was your best performance.' It’s just how we perceive it ourselves. You lay the groundwork, and you always hope you’ll fly."