The first long chapter of my career was almost entirely theater so that, by the time I was 30, 35, I sort of knew who I was as an actor, and I was gradually learning who I was as a human being.
John LithgowRead
If you're an actor, you tend to fool yourself into thinking you're much younger than you are because you're playing parts and behaving like a child all the time.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Actors may feel younger than their age due to the nature of their roles.
This quote by John Lithgow reflects on the unique experience of actors, suggesting that their profession requires them to embody various characters, often leading to a youthful mindset. In playing diverse roles, they engage in behaviors that might be associated with childhood, creating a disconnect between their actual age and their perceived age.
Themes
ActorYouthRoleChildMindset
In practice
Example use cases
At a theater workshop, you could share this quote to inspire actors to embrace their roles without feeling constrained by age.
More from John Lithgow
All quotes βI do think - I always tell that to young people - go to college, do theater, work with an audience. Don't try to learn how to act in front of millions and millions of people. Don't make that your first ambition, to be on a sitcom or get into the movies. Learn who you are as an actor, and the best way to do that is to do it in front of an audience.
John LithgowRead
It's wonderful to play a villain who gets a laugh or to stop a comedy dead in its tracks with a touching moment. It's kind of like a symphony that has very different movements.
John LithgowRead
I am a storyteller, and the stories I tell are, when I'm lucky, really good ones. It's a very exciting thing to do with your life, and that's, I think, what keeps me hopeful.
John LithgowRead
One of the things you learn as an actor is that human beings are capable of almost anything. I'm sort of in the business of illustrating that fact.
John LithgowRead
The essence of comedy, drama, and horror is surprise. I have an uncanny ability to surprise people because they look at my face, and they don't know where I'm going.
John LithgowRead
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