If you want to reach every person in the audience, it's not about being bigger, it's about going deeper.
Sanford MeisnerRead
Being an actor is a religious calling because you've been given the ability, the gift to inspire humanity. Think about that on the way to your soap opera audition.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Acting is a profound responsibility that can deeply influence and inspire others.
In this quote, Sanford Meisner emphasizes the sacred duty of being an actor, highlighting that the skill to evoke emotions and inspire audiences is not merely a talent but a calling similar to a religious vocation. He encourages aspiring actors to recognize the profound impact their work can have on humanity, urging them to reflect on this purpose as they pursue their craft.
Themes
ActingInspirationHumanityGiftDedication
In practice
Example use cases
During a workshop for aspiring actors, this quote can inspire them to see their craft as a means of impacting lives.
More from Sanford Meisner
All quotes →Your acting will not be good until it is only yours. That's true of music, acting, anything creative. You work until finally nobody is acting like you.
Sanford MeisnerRead
Acting is the ability to live truthfully under the given imaginary circumstances
Sanford MeisnerRead
You can't learn to act unless you're criticized. If you tie that criticism to your childhood insecurities you'll have a terrible time. Instead, you must take criticism objectively, pertaining it only to the work being done.
Sanford MeisnerRead
The only way to deal with yourself as an actor is to follow the emotional truth of what you have to do under the imaginary circumstances. And as you develop you become confident. You come to believe in what you're doing and trust it because it's out of you.
Sanford MeisnerRead
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