Learn your lines… plant your feet… look the other actor in the eye… say the words… mean them.
James CagneyRead
Once a song and dance man, always a song and dance man. Those few words tell as much about me professionally as there is to tell.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Once someone becomes defined by their art, it remains a fundamental part of their identity.
James Cagney's quote highlights the enduring nature of one's artistic identity. Once an individual dedicates themselves to the craft of performing, whether in song or dance, it becomes an intrinsic part of who they are, shaping their professional and personal life indefinitely. It suggests that the passion and creativity associated with their artistry continue to define them throughout their lifetime.
Themes
ArtIdentityPerformanceCreativityProfessionalism
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about pursuing one's passion.
More from James Cagney
All quotes →Similar quotes
Do I watch dancers as people? Yes, absolutely. Do I watch really good dancers for specifically who they are? Absolutely, because how they move best and how they look best is going to be most familiar to them, and not necessarily to me.
Twyla TharpRead
We watch a romantic comedy because we want to cry, say, or an action movie so we can participate in heroics. Horror's different. It can hit you with a moment of revulsion so hard you might want to erase the last five minutes of your life, please.
Stephen Graham JonesRead
To provide background and physical description and all the rest is of course vital to fiction, but vital only insofar as such detail is in the service of a richly imagined story, rather than in the service of good botany or good philosophy or good geography.
Tim O'BrienRead
Hip Hop is an idea. It is the pursuit of one's authentic being through the arts. It is not a physical thing; it is an attitude - even an aptitude.
Krs-OneRead
The Mediterranean has the color of mackerel, changeable I mean. You don't always know if it is green or violet, you can't even say it's blue, because the next moment the changing reflection has taken on a tint of rose or gray.
Vincent Van GoghRead
The artist is the opposite of the politically minded individual, the opposite of the reformer, the opposite of the idealist. The artist does not tinker with the universe, he recreates it out of his own experience and understanding of life.
Henry MillerRead