Every play is rhythmic control. If you want an audience to go on a journey, it's rhythmic control. You're crafting when they lean in, when they push back, when they breathe, when they surrender.
George C. WolfeRead
As a person of color, I was trained from very early on to see 'Leave It to Beaver,' 'Gilligan's Island,' or 'Hamlet' and look beyond the specifics of it - whether it be silly white people on an island or a family living in Nowheres or a Danish person - to leap past the specifics and find the human truths that have to do with me.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote emphasizes the ability to find universal truths in stories, regardless of cultural specifics.
George C. Wolfe's quote reflects the perspective of a person of color who has learned to transcend racial and cultural boundaries when engaging with media and literature. Instead of focusing solely on the superficial details of characters and situations that may not represent his own experience, he prioritizes the deeper human truths that resonate with his life and identity, advocating for an understanding that connects diverse narratives to shared human experiences.
Themes
UnderstandingTruthPerspectiveNarrativeIdentity
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about diversity in media, you can use this quote to emphasize the importance of seeing beyond race and culture.
More from George C. Wolfe
All quotes βOne of the things I learned very early on was that if you cast the show correctly, and if you've created the right energy in the room, the solution is also in the room. The solution doesn't necessarily come from someone, but if everybody is working in a very steadfast and rigorous way, then everything you're looking for is in the room.
George C. WolfeRead
A musical is what happens when text collides with motion collides with song collides with spectacle. And spectacle can be the human heart; it doesn't necessarily have to be a helicopter crashing.
George C. WolfeRead
The wonderful thing about theater is that it has so many people involved in the creation of it. The worst thing about theater is that it has so many people involved in the creation of it. That dynamic is thrilling and challenging every time you make a show.
George C. WolfeRead
I was raised to believe that other people's suffering was my responsibility.
George C. WolfeRead
I think I am the first person of color to direct a major white play on Broadway. In 1993? That's astounding to me. And horrifying to me.
George C. WolfeRead
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