Tom Stoppard Quotes

And I don't consider Broadway the acropolis of theatrical art. I mean Broadway is commercial - that's what it is. It's expensive seats and a lot of them that have to be filled every night. Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway, as far as I'm concerned, is in New York the pride of New York theater.

I'm not a person who believes that Broadway is the only place. I think there's lots of work that goes on outside of Broadway and outside of New York that's better than anything Broadway has ever seen. But, it's historically the place. It's one of the centers of the universe, in many ways.

I did a couple of little Off-Broadway things, but my first Broadway show was A History Of The American Film, written by Chris Durang. Swoosie Kurtz was one of the stars. It was a wonderful show. It closed in 40 performances. I think it was kind of ahead of its time.

When I'm makin' lectures to these universities, I tell 'em I like that little building because when I run short a audience, if I can get three people in there I've got a good crowd.

My usual route is, I do a play at South Coast Rep, then there's time between and I revise it, and then I take it to New York.

People see a lot of huge stuff on Broadway, but there's always Off-Broadway energy and also shows that you can work in.

I love the smaller scenes. I love the smaller, slightly more theatrical scenes.

I came out of school just at the time regional theater was first expanding. All of a sudden, lots of new companies needed actors.

I did a lot of theater in the South side of Chicago.

New York is a great place to be fed in the arts. The arts in general are a large part of my life. The city was my postgraduate course.

I've always liked the idea of regularly doing a play but I was offered things which I felt were too 'celebie' and West Endy.

Over the years, I managed to develop this comedy career, went from opening act to headliner at comedy clubs, to playing concert halls, and had an off-Broadway show with 'Sleepwalk With Me.'

I think 'Hand to God' is going to change the landscape of Broadway. I think Broadway, truthfully, will never be the same.

It's not like I had big dreams to go to California and become an actor. I loved doing my shows at school and community theater, and I probably would have settled in New York because it was closer. I was going to go to NYU.

I know for a fact that a lot of actors are desperate and unhappy if their careers are not progressing at what they think is the correct rate. They just go crazy if they're not working. I don't feel I'd be that way. You can always get a few people together and put on a play. Maybe not in New York or L.A., but in a lot of other towns, you can.

I used to do community theater with Conor Oberst.

My family was amazing; they exposed me to the world of show business, and, boy, it was the '70s and I got to spend a lot of time backstage at theaters and see the inner workings of how this entertainment industry is really put together.

'Yosemite' opened doors for me in the New York theater community in amazing ways. There's a whole world of fearless young theater makers here who put shows together on a shoestring budget and with gigantic hearts.

Pretty much from 1979 through 1988, the backbone of my career was the theater. Working on Broadway a couple of times, working off-Broadway, and also doing a lot of regional theater. Make no mistake, I lived very frugally. I had an apartment that was real cheap. I would get two or three jobs per season, and in between I'd be on unemployment.

When I was growing up, there was no such thing as Off-Broadway. You either got your show on or you didn't.

I'm a kid that went to theater school. I thought I was going to be making my living doing plays regionally or in New York or on Broadway, and maybe if I got lucky I would do a movie here or there.

I live in Philadelphia, and my wife and I do a lot of theater out in the Philadelphia community.

If it's not in New York, let's say it's in St. Louis, then they've got to find a place or get with someone who knows about the work... they've got to find a place like that and do scenes, and then try to get in plays.

By the time I started writing plays, Broadway was never an expectation, so it's never been central.

All I wanted was to be a regional-theater actor, to be in a company. I thought it would be a great life. I don't think I understood how difficult it would be.