C Stanislavski Quotes

#1. We have as many planes of speech as does a painting planes of perspective which create perspective in a phrase. The most important word stands out most vividly defined in the very foreground of the sound plane. Less important words create a series of deeper planes.

Constantin Stanislavski

#2. Doubt is the enemy of creativeness.

Constantin Stanislavski

#3. Love art in yourself, not yourself in art.

Konstantin Stanislavski

#4. When an actor is completely absorbed by some profoundly moving objective so that he throws his whole being passionately into its execution, he reaches a state we call inspiration.

Constantin Stanislavski

#5. The direct effect on our mind is achieved by the words, the text, the thought, which arouse consideration. Our will is directly affected by the super-objective, by other objectives, by a through line of action. Our feelings are directly worked upon by tempo-rhythm.

Constantin Stanislavski

#6. In talking about a genius, you would not say that he lies; he sees realities with different eyes from ours.

Constantin Stanislavski

#7. In the language of an actor, to know is synonymous with to feel

Konstantin Stanislavski

#8. When we are on stage, we are in the here and now.

Constantin Stanislavski

#9. I always think instinct is more interesting than anything you can think up. I mistrust and am rather bored with actors who are of the Stanislavski school who think about detail.

Denholm Elliott

#10. When you're playing a character who's cruel, look for the places where he's kind. When you're playing a character who is unhappy, look for the places where he has a glint of merriment.

Constantin Stanislavski

#11. All action in theatre must have inner justification, be logical, coherent, and real.

Constantin Stanislavski

#12. Love the art in yourself, not yourself in the art.

Constantin Stanislavski

#13. Remember: there are no small parts, only small actors.

Constantin Stanislavski

#14. The greatest wisdom is to realize one's lack of it.

Constantin Stanislavski

#15. Fear your admirers! Learn in time to hear, understand, and love the cruel truth about yourselves!

Constantin Stanislavski

#16. I was truly happy. But my state was not that of any ordinary satisfaction. It was a joy which stemmed directly from creative, artistic achievement.

Konstantin Stanislavski

#17. Young actors, fear your admirers! Learn in time, from your first steps, to hear, understand and love the cruel truth about yourselves. Find out who can tell you that truth and talk of your art only with those who can tell you the truth.

Constantin Stanislavski

#18. All art is autobiographical - if it's not, it's not going to quicken on-stage, and it's not going to come alive.

Constantin Stanislavski

#19. In life we listen to other people. Listen with varying degrees of concentration and attention, right? Actors must learn to listen in a different way.

Constantin Stanislavski

#20. If you are looking for something, don't go sit on the seashore and expect it to come and find you; you must search, search, search with all the stubbornness in you!

Konstantin Stanislavski

#21. In the creative process there is the father, the author of the play; the mother, the actor pregnant with the part; and the child, the role to be born.

Constantin Stanislavski

#22. My advice to any actor who's playing, quote, unquote, "extra" to think of it more like Stanislavski did. It's not a small part. You are the lead in the movie, in your own movie.

Harvey Keitel

#23. Every person who is really an artist desires to create inside of himself another, deeper, more interesting life than the one that actually surrounds him.

Konstantin Stanislavski

#24. Everyone at every minute of his life must feel something. Only the dead have no sensations.

Konstantin Stanislavski

#25. The theatre infects the audience with its noble ecstasy.

Konstantin Stanislavski

#26. Play well, or play badly, but play truly.

Constantin Stanislavski

#27. The person you are is a thousand times more interesting than the best actor you could ever hope to be.

Constantin Stanislavski

#28. You can kill the King without a sword, and you can light the fire without a match. What needs to burn is your imagination.

Konstantin Stanislavski

#29. The actor must use his imagination to be able to answer all questions (when, where, why, how). Make the make-believer existence more definite.

Constantin Stanislavski

#30. Don't go so deep in yourself that you no longer exist for your partner and for the character and for the play.

Constantin Stanislavski