Constantin Stanislavski Quotes

I am always excited to be an actor. If I wasn't, I would be acting, and the audience wouldn't watch me.

I still feel I belong to the theatre. There is nothing more challenging and exciting for an actor than performing before a live audience. The stage is the real testing ground for an actor.

Being an actor in movies is a lot about the power of your imagination and making the circumstance real to you so the audience will feel that it's real.

Acting is trying to be absolutely truthful; to get audiences to believe that you are a dean, when, actually, not only are you not the dean, but if you walked into the building they'd probably throw you out. That's very hard.

Acting is a matter of giving away secrets.

I love acting. It's an interesting challenge to make something that doesn't exist appear like it's happening, and to do it in a real way.

I'm an actor, and I'm supposed to reflect real people.

I always felt the play came first. If it didn't touch me, I'd say forget the part.

Acting is an emotion which has to be felt. Some feel it, some don't!

Theatre is something that keeps me very alert, and I am actively creating whether I am on stage or directing. In films, I feel I become more of an introvert, going deeper in the realism of a character.

Theatre is really an actor's playground.

For me, theatre and cinema are both pillars of an actor's life; I'd feel very half-baked if I was only doing one and not the other.

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.

One of the things I enjoyed the most is just working as an actor.

I really love to act; I love everything about it. I've never had this addiction to being known. I mean, sure, if you go into acting, there's part of you that is saying, 'I want attention' but I was brought up to work to deserve attention, and it is the work, not the trappings that are important.

For me, acting is doing.

I don't sit around with other actors and talk about the pain and the magic of acting.

I love theatre because it's just me and the audience. It's the litmus test in acting, to be able to sustain a performance over one, two or three hours.

'Funny People' is my favorite performance of myself to date. Even though it's a comedy and there are serious moments, I really felt like Leo felt like a real person. It didn't feel like I was playing myself. Whether it's a comedy or drama, I just try to make it as realistic as possible.

I love doing theater so much - being in front of an audience and seeing how a character grows and develops with every performance.

Directing is something I always wanted to do. I started when I was 13 directing scenes in high school and then plays in college with my theatre company.

Acting is what happens on the way.

There's a tremendous amount to be gained from being a performer, and being an artist, and being an actor.

I can't imagine anything more debilitating, anything more challenging, anything more thrilling than to get on a stage and do any kind of play. It is such a vulnerable place for any actor to be in.