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Quote by Edward Albee

“The condition of the theater is always an accurate measure of the cultural health of a nation. A play always exists in the present tense (if it is a valuable one), and its music -- its special noise -- is always contemporary. The most valuable function of the theater as an art form is to tell us who we are, and the health of the theater is determined by how much of that we want to know.”

Quote by Edward Albee

Book:Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

Work

Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

This collection brings together a selection of essays written by Edward Albee, a prominent figure in American theater. The essays delve into Albee's personal reflections on his work, the craft of playwriting, and the broader cultural landscape of theater. The volume offers insights into Albee's creative mind and his approach to the art of storytelling. more

Author

American playwright, known for his unique dramatic style and profound exploration of modern family relationships. Edward Albee's works often involve complex interpersonal relationships and moral dilemmas, and his plays hold a significant place in 20th-century American theater. more

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“The notion that women are less aesthetically profound and innovative than men--just not very important, if you know what I mean--doubtless spreads back to our beginnings as upright animals: the males hunted and killed for the family while the females stayed home in the cave and tended the strange little creatures they were giving birth to.”

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“The responsibility of the writer is to be a sort of demonic social critic -- to present the world and people in it as he sees it and say, "Do you like it? If you don't like it, change it.”

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Book:Conversations with Edward Albee

Source: Conversations with Edward Albee

“I think that's foolishness on the part of the playwright to write about himself. People don't know anything about themselves.”

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Author:Edward Albee

“In a democracy you cannot stop public access to that art that will most misinform the people. You cannot stop people from being misinformed. But what you can do is to educate the people to the point that they will throw the rascals out.”

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Book:Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

Source: Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

“That's the happiest moment. When it's all done. When we stop. When we can stop.”

Book:The Collected Plays of Edward Albee: 1979-2003

Source: The Collected Plays of Edward Albee: 1979-2003

“I don't think I've ever written about me. I'm not a character in any of my plays, except that boy, that silent boy that turns up in Three Tall Women.”

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Book:Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

Source: Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee

“I was twenty-nine years old and I wasn't a very good poet and I wasn't a very good novelist, [so] I thought I would try writing a play, which seems to have worked out a little better.”

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Book:Conversations with Edward Albee

Source: Conversations with Edward Albee

“It is not enough to hold the line against the dark. It is your responsibility to lead into the light. People don't like the light--it reveals too much. But hand in hand with the creative artist, you can lead people into the wisdom that is known to all other animals: simply, that it is the dark we have to fear.”

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Author:Edward Albee

“By some curious mischance, a couple of my plays managed to hit an area where commercial success was feasible. But it's wrong to think I'm a commercial playwright who has somehow ceased his proper function. I have always been the same thing - which is not a commercial playwright. I'm not after the brass ring.”

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Author:Edward Albee

“I stopped acting when I was about nineteen, twenty, when I got thrown out of college. I did act for about ten years. I don't know. I suspect I'm still a reasonably good actor, but I don't really know that I want to get on the stage again ... and having to say all those boring words by me over and over again ... I don't know if I want to do that. Also, I like a certain amount of freedom of movement, and if you're acting, you're stuck in one place for a long time. Having said that, I will probably be onstage next fall.”

Source: Stretching My Mind: The Collected Essays of Edward Albee