Michael Shurtleff was a casting director, best known for Audition.
Quick Facts About Michael Shurtleff
Born
July 3, 1920
Died
January 28, 2007
Profession
Casting Director
Notable works
Audition
About Michael Shurtleff
Michael Shurtleff was a major force in casting on Broadway during the 1960s and 1970s. He wrote Audition, a book for actors on the audition process. He also wrote numerous one-act and full-length plays.
![“Humor [in a scene] is not jokes. It is that attitude toward being alive without which you would long ago have jumped off the 59th Street Bridge.” quote by Michael Shurtleff](https://sms4smile.com/q/img-quotes/504/michael-shurtleff-19554_acting_humor-in-a-scene-is-not-jokes-it-is-that_611053.png)
![“Competition [in a scene] is healthy. Competition is life. Yet most actors refuse to acknowledge this. They don't want to compete. They want to get along. And they are therefore not first-rate actors.” quote by Michael Shurtleff](https://sms4smile.com/q/img-quotes/75e/michael-shurtleff-19554_acknowledge_competition-in-a-scene-is-healthy-compet_1161371.png)
![“An actor is looking for conflict. Conflict is what creates drama. We are taught to avoid trouble [so] actors don't realize they must go looking for it. Plays are written about...the extraordinary, the unusual, the climaxes. The more conflict actors find, the more interesting the performance.” quote by Michael Shurtleff](https://sms4smile.com/q/img-quotes/39e/michael-shurtleff-19554_acting_an-actor-is-looking-for-conflict-conflic_3222619.png)
