The Great Acting Blog: “5 Harold Pinter Statements On The Creative Process”
Harold Pinter has always been a great influence on me, and a great inspiration. Below are some statements of his which I return to occasionally to aid my thinking.
Pinter is of course primarily talking about writing, but his thoughts can just as easily concern actors, or indeed any kind of artist.
For me, the key lesson is to only concern yourself with doing the work at hand as well and as honestly as possible, without worrying too much about effect. This way of thinking may steer us away from betraying our work, while at the same time giving us the confidence to make bold creative choices….
1. “I don’t give a damn what other people think. It’s entirely their own business. I’m not writing for other people.”
2. “There never is any such thing as one truth to be found in dramatic art. There are many. These truths challenge each other, recoil from each other, reflect each other, ignore each other, tease each other, are blind to each other. Sometimes you feel you have the truth of a moment in your hand, then it slips through your fingers and is lost.
3. “The more acute the experience, the less articulate the expression.”
4. “When we look into a mirror we think the image that confronts us is accurate. But move a millimeter and the image changes. We are actually looking at a never-ending range of reflections. Sometimes a writer has to smash the mirror-for it is on the other side of the mirror that the truth stares at us.”
5. “I think too many people working today—writers, actors, the whole lot—worry too much about what the audiences want; they wonder what will shock and surprise the audiences, the critics. These are things we can never really ascertain. Better, I think, to focus on the things that you want; focus on the things that shock and surprise you—and that arise from within you. The riches are inside of us; the stories are inside of us. They are not out there, among the stalls. Pluck something dark and unique from within yourself, share it, and be amazed at how you are suddenly connecting with people.”
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.