Tom Stoppard Quotes

Theater is a space where you cross over from everyday life, because there are real people in that moment moving in front of you - you're being invited to believe in a story and cross that bridge.

I love the simple poetry of theater, where you can stand in a spotlight on a stage and wrap a coat around you, and say, 'It was 1860 and it was winter...'

Acting is like lying. The art of lying well. I'm paid to tell elaborate lies.

To be in theater you have to be a kind of psychologist, for you're always trying to understand character and motives.

In theater, you're playing characters. You believe you're somebody else, and you're acting.

There tends to be this hierarchy of film and television, and theater is somewhere else in its own milieu. However, as actors, yes, we love to do theater because it's our story. Nobody can edit it, the curtain goes up, and it's ours for two hours or three, or whatever. And we tell it.

I always envisioned working in film and in theater. Theater and film are not, they're not in any way substitutable. What I love about theater is so different from what I love about film, and I enjoy the craft of both.

I love the theater. I love being on stage; I love the live audience. I also love dressing up and all of the make-believe.

At the end of the day, acting is all about telling lies. We are professional imposters and the audience accept that. We've made this deal that we tell you a tale and a pack of lies, but there will be a truth in it. You may enjoy it, or it will disturb you.

Singing and acting on a show is like theater; it doesn't get any better.

Directors are denied a great pleasure, which is that of being on stage.

Theater is about surprises and things that you haven't seen before on stage.

Acted drama requires surrender of one's self, sympathetic absorption in the play as it develops.

I think theater is more about living and breathing, versus TV, which can vary.

There's something about getting onstage in a play where the actor tells the story, beginning, middle, and end, the way they want to tell it. For me, it's the most powerful place to be, and it's the most empowering place to be.

I've always liked being on the performance end of it. I've come up with different ideas, but as far as being a creative writer, I'm not sure about that. I've always liked the performance end of it and wrestling, getting in the ring in front of a live crowd.

When you're on stage, you're playing to whoever is in the back of the room, and TV and film is so much more detailed and nuanced, but I think that's what I always wanted to do. As much as I love theater and musical theater and would love to do it again, I really love the subtleties of film and theater acting.

The biggest impact that acting and theater had was, of course, stage presence, but it also had a big impact on my writing.

As rewarding as a good film role can be, there is just nothing like getting up on a stage and taking an audience for a ride.

Film and stage are very different; I don't necessarily prefer one over the other. Every few years, I get a big itch to go back to the theater. To learn humility, to learn bravery and to remind yourself that the pistons that drive your craft are working on full power. And to remind yourself how badly paid actors can be.

In theater, there's a lot of work to do to build the characters. It's a great experience.

The roles I'm interested in or have been interested in, you know, it's going to get down to conflict. Drama is conflict - conflict of interests.

I've done a lot of theater, and I know that it's a different audience each time who doesn't know the story, and we have to tell it.

As a child, I was always interested in drama and performance.

I've always really liked theater. It fascinated me. You can create a reality and get people involved in that reality. It takes place in real time.