Acting is merely the art of keeping a large group of people from coughing.
Meaning of the quote
Acting is like a magic trick. When you're on stage or in a movie, your job is to make the audience so interested in the story that they forget about coughing or making any other noises. If you do it right, the audience will be so focused on what's happening that they won't even think about coughing.
About Ralph Richardson
Sir Ralph Richardson was a renowned English actor who, along with John Gielgud and Laurence Olivier, dominated the British stage for much of the 20th century. He had a successful film career, appearing in over 60 movies, and was known for his eccentric behavior and poetic acting style.
More quotes from Ralph Richardson
The art of acting consists in keeping people from coughing.
British actor (1902-1983)
Acting is the ability to dream on cue.
British actor (1902-1983)
The most precious things in speech are pauses.
British actor (1902-1983)
Acting is merely the art of keeping a large group of people from coughing.
British actor (1902-1983)
You’ve got to perform in a role hundreds of times. In keeping it fresh one can become a large, madly humming, demented refrigerator.
British actor (1902-1983)
In music, the punctuation is absolutely strict, the bars and rests are absolutely defined. But our punctuation cannot be quite strict, because we have to relate it to the audience. In other words we are continually changing the score.
British actor (1902-1983)