“I think I became a better writer after I started writing for the New Yorker. Well, I know I did. And part of it was having my New Yorker editor and part of it is that was when I started really going on tour and reading things in front of an audience 30 times and then going back in the room and rewriting it and reading it and rewriting it. So you really get the rhythm of the sentences down and you really get the flow down and you get rid of stuff that's not important.” ThinkingKnowsWritingWellsImportantReadingStuffRoomsAudienceFrontsFlowDown AndSentencesRhythmEditorsNew YorkersRewriting Author:David Sedaris
“When I can do an acoustic set, I can sit down and sing. And then when I have a huge arena full of people, there's nothing like that. It's the coolest feeling in the world, but I also like to play small intimate shows because I feel you can connect a little more. And that's something I had to learn - how to connect to a big audience versus the small one.” PeopleWorldFeelsLittlesI CanPlayShowsFeelingsBigsCan DoAudienceHugeDown AndIntimateVersusArenaAcoustics Author:Avril Lavigne
“Your only guidepost is your own instinct and judicious editing. In my stand-up act I learned that in the first 10 minutes I could say anything and it would get a laugh. Then I'd better deliver. In the movie it's the same thing. You get a lot of laughs when people first sit down and then the story better kick in. Many years in front of an audience, I would hope, give me a sense of what works.” PeopleGivingYearsFirstsStoriesAudienceLaughingMinutesFrontsGive MeDown AndInstinctKicksEditingSay Anything Author:Steve Martin
“For me, as a film goer, I like nothing more than to sit in the cinema, have the lights go down and not know what I'm about to see or unfold on-screen. Every time we go to make a film, we do everything we can to try to systematise things so we're able to make the film in private, so that when it's finished it's up to the audience to make of it what they will.” KnowsTryingLightAbleFilmAudienceDown AndFinishedScreensCinema Author:Christopher Nolan
“I'm going to be cremated from the neck down. And at my funeral, when people are talking about me, they have to hold my head. And then at the end, they have to kick me into the audience and the audience has to keep me up for at least three hits or you have to start the whole service over. No cradling it - I want legit sets.” PeopleWantEndsWholeHumorFunnyThreeTalkingAudienceDown AndKicksNecksFuneralTalking About MeLegit Author:Daniel Tosh
“The thing I love about live performance the most, is that the doors are closed, the lights are turned down, and the audience has to be reverential to what's happening onstage.” LightAudienceDoorsHappeningsPerformancesDown AndThings I LoveTurned DownLive Performance Author:Cate Blanchett
“TV is a different animal. It's not a club set. As you said, you do short sets on TV - about five minutes. So you have to get that rhythm down and also be aware of the camera so you're connecting with the viewers at home as well as the studio audience. It's a different muscle to develop.” WellsSaidDifferentHomeAnimalAudienceFiveMinutesTvsDown AndCamerasClubsStudiosRhythmMusclesViewersConnectingFive MinutesDifferent Animals Author:Ted Alexandro
“I look down and see little kids in the audience and I'm like, "Oh man, I hope I'm not poisoning these kids!"” MenLooksLittlesKidsAudienceDown AndLittle KidPoisoning Author:DJ Quik