I want to do work that means something to me so that when I go to work at the theater eight times a week, I want to be there.
Billy PorterRead
I took 'Grease' to play my trump card, my voice, and get attention that would lead to auditions for serious work like 'Angels in America.' But I backed myself into a corner with 'Grease,' and it took me 17 years to get out.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Billy Porter reflects on how a commercial success can sometimes limit an artist's opportunities.
In this quote, Billy Porter discusses the dual nature of artistic success, where his choice to star in a popular production like 'Grease' initially allowed him to showcase his vocal talent and gain visibility, but ultimately led to a typecasting that inhibited his ability to pursue more serious roles for many years. This highlights the complex relationship between commercial success and creative freedom in the arts.
Themes
ArtSuccessCreativityOpportunityTheater
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech at an award ceremony, one could use this quote to emphasize the risks and sacrifices artists make for their careers.
More from Billy Porter
All quotes →When you grow up in the church, the only translation in that insular world that people understand is preaching. You're supposed to be a minister. So I was going down that path, and then I saw the Tonys.
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I was fine being in the closet at the beginning of my career because that's what you were supposed to be - until I realized that it didn't serve anybody, and I was left feeling utterly empty. This is who I am, so I've gotta be me.
Billy PorterRead
For me, I really feel like if there's not a real, true connection to the material, I don't need to sing it. I don't need to sing songs just because I like them anymore. I've done that.
Billy PorterRead
I grew up when one of America's greatest black playwrights, August Wilson, was writing about life in Pittsburgh, but I never saw myself in any of his straight-male plays. And then I see 'Angels,' which was so honest and painful, and it had this black drag queen in it, Belize, with a big heart. I finally had a character to relate to.
Billy PorterRead
There was a time in the '90s where, as an African-American man, you had to be a misogynistic R&B star or a rapper, and I didn't fit into either one of those. I was advised by my label to remain closeted at that time.
Billy PorterRead
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