--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When you're starting out as an actor, you…" description: "\"When you're starting out as an actor, you keep raising the stakes. First, you just want to be a character who comes on stage and gets a laugh or two an..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/charles-kimbrough-53066_actors_when-you-re-starting-out-as-an-actor-you_1227601.jpg" --- # When you're starting out as an actor, you keep raising the… ![“When you're starting out as an actor, you keep raising the stakes. First, you just want to be a character who comes on stage and gets a laugh or two and exits. Just five minutes on a stage, not even Broadway. But every time you say your little prayer at night, you place more demands.” quote by Charles Kimbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/charles-kimbrough-53066_actors_when-you-re-starting-out-as-an-actor-you_1227601.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/charles-kimbrough-53066_actors_when-you-re-starting-out-as-an-actor-you_1227601.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/64c/charles-kimbrough-53066_actors_when-you-re-starting-out-as-an-actor-you_1227601.jpg) > “When you're starting out as an actor, you keep raising the stakes. First, you just want to be a character who comes on stage and gets a laugh or two and exits. Just five minutes on a stage, not even Broadway. But every time you say your little prayer at night, you place more demands.” [Charles Kimbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kimbrough/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Actors should continuously raise their ambitions, moving from small roles to larger, more demanding ones as they grow. **In simple terms:** Keep aiming higher as you gain experience. Key Takeaway Set progressively bigger goals. Themes ambition career growth performance self‑improvement risk taking Mood motivational reflective Type inspirational career advice When to use this quote - audition preparation - seeking larger roles - building a portfolio - networking with directors Key Concepts Goal setting skill development confidence building Questions to Reflect On - What new challenge will you set for yourself? - How do you maintain joy while aiming higher? A Different Perspective Higher stakes can lead to burnout if not balanced with self‑care. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Actors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actors/) [Broadway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broadway/) [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Night](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/night/) [Prayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prayer/) [Stage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stage/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) ## Related quotes > [I think the more people you add on stage, the more locked it things become. Whereas fewer members on stage gets the audience to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-cain/i-think-the-more-people-you-add-on-stage-the-more-locked-it-things/) [Chris Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-cain/) > [“Pretend you're not alone, Like you are center stage on Broadway. 'Cause when you're on your own a little opera goes a long way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sky-sailing-adam-young/pretend-you-re-not-alone-like-you-are-center-stage-on-broadway-cause/) Sky Sailing Adam Young > [I want to be on the big stage. Broadway. I was there before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joey-heatherton/i-want-to-be-on-the-big-stage-broadway-i-was-there-before/) [Joey Heatherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joey-heatherton/) > [Los Angeles is where you have to be if you want to be an actor. You have no choice. 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You are given a lot of dimensions than a single dimension…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fahadh-faasil/every-character-when-it-comes-to-a-cinematic-representation-gets/) [Fahadh Faasil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fahadh-faasil/) > [“Though the power for godly character comes from Christ, the responsibility for developing and displaying that character is ours.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-bridges/though-the-power-for-godly-character-comes-from-christ-the/) [Jerry Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-bridges/) ## More by Charles Kimbrough > [It's funny because all through the '80s I didn't do TV and movies very much. I prided myself that I was making a living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kimbrough/it-s-funny-because-all-through-the-80s-i-didn-t-do-tv-and-movies-very/) [Charles Kimbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kimbrough/) > [I've always been slightly self-conscious as an actor, and I guess that sometimes reads as pomposity. Starting when I was 30, I somehow gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kimbrough/i-ve-always-been-slightly-self-conscious-as-an-actor-and-i-guess-that/) [Charles Kimbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kimbrough/) > [I didn't want to break with my family. I wasn't about to make waves. But I had this feeling I wanted to do something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kimbrough/i-didn-t-want-to-break-with-my-family-i-wasn-t-about-to-make-waves/) [Charles Kimbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kimbrough/) > [I came out of school just at the time regional theater was first expanding. All of a sudden, lots of new companies needed actors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-kimbrough/i-came-out-of-school-just-at-the-time-regional-theater-was-first/) [Charles Kimbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-kimbrough/) > [Frankly, to be honest, I hadn't worked for two years before 'Murphy Brown.' 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I've been getting away with it ever since.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akshay-kumar/i-once-told-someone-i-could-act-they-totally-bought-it-i-ve-been/) [Akshay Kumar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akshay-kumar/) > [There has got to be a way for me to have a role on TV or in film that is just as normal as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel-akhtar/there-has-got-to-be-a-way-for-me-to-have-a-role-on-tv-or-in-film-that/) [Adeel Akhtar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adeel-akhtar/) > [I love casting against type and doing things you wouldn't expect, because I think you get more interesting performances that way. Hollywood loves to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-s-goyer/i-love-casting-against-type-and-doing-things-you-wouldn-t-expect/) [David S. 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I was typecast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divine/i-never-planned-to-do-female-roles-it-just-happened-i-was-typecast/) [Divine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divine/) > [Once I committed to acting, this has been it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-hudson/once-i-committed-to-acting-this-has-been-it/) [Ernie Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-hudson/) [Browse all 21,590 Actor quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When you're starting out as an actor, you keep raising the stakes. First, you just want to be a character who comes on stage and gets a laugh or two and exits. Just five minutes on a stage, not even Broadway. 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