John Simon Quotes

Opera is a beautiful and important diversion for me.

Before there were any sort of 'recordings' there was performance. If we are devolved back to the Stone Age tomorrow, there will be performance.

I think the opera is one of the great cultural jewels of Los Angeles.

I don't see that many plays, and for me, musicals are rarely pleasing.

All art at a certain level is entertainment. We go to a tragedy by Sophocles to be entertained.

I tend to go to the theater a lot. I've always loved it.

It was my idea for high culture and popular culture to be treated equally.

I'd always gone to the theater as a child every month to see whatever was on. I think that's where the passion for it came from.

You went to your first Broadway play or musical at some point, right? Come to opera.

We do want to be diverted and be interested and be provoked by popular culture - by art, if we're lucky. And it's amazing how often people have lost sight of this.

I loved working in Pittsburgh - the theater there is amazing, so many different types of theater.

All of our lives are enriched by our culture, from blockbuster films, best-selling video games, independent music, and internationally-renowned museums and art collections, to theatre, opera, ballet, literary festivals and performance poetry.

I am a big fan of musical theater.

My mum asked me what I prefer, and I said, 'I never miss film, but I miss theater.'

I've always been entranced with theater.

Musicals are to the theater what wines are to a substantial dinner.

Theater's my first love. I love it. It excites me. It feeds me.

Theater is the most important thing in life for me.

Most musicals are real crowd pleasers.

I'm working in theater. I did not grow up loving or even knowing anything about it, except for 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and 'Tommy.' But I love it. It's such a great collaborative thing.

I always wanted to do film. And I still love theater.

If your church is the theatre, New York means a lot - it's a pilgrimage you want to make.

Broadway was weird.

As far as theater goes, Sarah DeLappe's 'The Wolves' is one of my favorite things I've ever seen.

People go to musicals because they want to hear some really good songs.