--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Plays are frequently infected with ideas…" description: "\"Plays are frequently infected with ideas that came from actors or even sound engineers. Some Shakespeare scholars wonder whether some of the Bard's lin..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/clive-thompson-15484_actor_plays-are-frequently-infected-with-ideas_2996397.png" --- # Plays are frequently infected with ideas that came from… ![“Plays are frequently infected with ideas that came from actors or even sound engineers. Some Shakespeare scholars wonder whether some of the Bard's lines came from onstage improvisations by actors.” quote by Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/clive-thompson-15484_actor_plays-are-frequently-infected-with-ideas_2996397.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/clive-thompson-15484_actor_plays-are-frequently-infected-with-ideas_2996397.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7b9/clive-thompson-15484_actor_plays-are-frequently-infected-with-ideas_2996397.png) > “Plays are frequently infected with ideas that came from actors or even sound engineers. Some Shakespeare scholars wonder whether some of the Bard's lines came from onstage improvisations by actors.” [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative contributions often arise from collaborative improvisation, blurring authorial boundaries. **In simple terms:** Ideas can emerge from any crew member. Key Takeaway Value all creative input. Themes collaboration authorship theatre improvisation Mood analytical curious Type critical reflective When to use this quote - theatre productions - film sets - radio shows Key Concepts media studies creative process Questions to Reflect On - How does improvisation shape final works? - Should credit be shared more broadly? A Different Perspective Attribution can be contested. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Engineers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/engineers/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Plays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plays/) [Scholars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scholars/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) ## Related quotes > [General improvisations often give actors an insight beyond their words by helping them to 'see the word' and achieve a reality for the scene.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viola-spolin/general-improvisations-often-give-actors-an-insight-beyond-their/) [Viola Spolin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viola-spolin/) > [Even if you're improvising, the fact that beforehand you know certain things will work helps you make those improvisations successful. It really helps to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cale/even-if-you-re-improvising-the-fact-that-beforehand-you-know-certain/) [John Cale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cale/) > [In a certain sense, aspects of my solo playing were developed in order to test the theory about how long particular elements could be,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-parker/in-a-certain-sense-aspects-of-my-solo-playing-were-developed-in-order/) [Evan Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-parker/) > [“I've always felt that the performance of a raag resembles a novel - or at least the kind of novel I'm attempting to write.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-seth/i-ve-always-felt-that-the-performance-of-a-raag-resembles-a-novel-or/) [Vikram Seth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-seth/) > [Karthi is such a wonderful human being. He is always focused towards improvisations and keeps working on it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhimanyu-singh/karthi-is-such-a-wonderful-human-being-he-is-always-focused-towards/) [Abhimanyu Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhimanyu-singh/) > [Jazz music is all about performance, right? At least, to me, it's about the freedom of performance, the different inflections you do in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/jazz-music-is-all-about-performance-right-at-least-to-me-it-s-about/) [Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/) > [Sometimes some of the best moments are contributed by the actors being creative, with their own improvisations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/sometimes-some-of-the-best-moments-are-contributed-by-the-actors/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [I really enjoyed working on 'Dumb & Dumberer' with Cheri Oteri, maybe because we are both into improvisations. We were meant to act together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-levy/i-really-enjoyed-working-on-dumb-dumberer-with-cheri-oteri-maybe/) [Eugene Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-levy/) > [My paintings and comedy have a lot in common. They are both improvisations based on observation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-winters/my-paintings-and-comedy-have-a-lot-in-common-they-are-both/) [Jonathan Winters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-winters/) > [My solo playing utilizes the deployment of suggestive psychic rhythms. I'll state these throughout a given piece and play thematic improvisations on top of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wadada-leo-smith/my-solo-playing-utilizes-the-deployment-of-suggestive-psychic-rhythms/) [Wadada Leo Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wadada-leo-smith/) > [Even when I was studying piano, I always preferred to play around with my own improvisations rather than do my studies. So I've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-johannsson/even-when-i-was-studying-piano-i-always-preferred-to-play-around-with/) [Johann Johannsson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-johannsson/) > [During improvisations, I'll hear people bringing back up details from something I heard about at breakfast or something somebody was saying that they were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-swanberg/during-improvisations-i-ll-hear-people-bringing-back-up-details-from/) [Joe Swanberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-swanberg/) > [Improvisation was the blood and bone of jazz, and in the classic, New Orleans jazz it was collective improvisation in which each performer, seemingly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-lynes/improvisation-was-the-blood-and-bone-of-jazz-and-in-the-classic-new/) [Russell Lynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-lynes/) > [In acting, one should look at the film in totality. Improvisations should only be made keeping in mind the limits of a character. Always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aparshakti-khurana/in-acting-one-should-look-at-the-film-in-totality-improvisations/) [Aparshakti Khurana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aparshakti-khurana/) > [What I want to happen is to be really creative, and to play something new in the improvisations, every time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-brubeck/what-i-want-to-happen-is-to-be-really-creative-and-to-play-something/) [Dave Brubeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-brubeck/) ## More by Clive Thompson > [The Internet lets thousands of total strangers collaborate to produce a truly hivelike result.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/the-internet-lets-thousands-of-total-strangers-collaborate-to-produce/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [Novelists in particular love to rhapsodize about the glory of the solitary mind; this is natural, because their job requires them to sit in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/novelists-in-particular-love-to-rhapsodize-about-the-glory-of-the/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [When you're an expert in a subject, you can retain new factoids on your favorite topic easily. This only works for the subjects you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/when-you-re-an-expert-in-a-subject-you-can-retain-new-factoids-on/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [Why are online games so addictive? It's mostly the narcotic appeal of 'leveling.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/why-are-online-games-so-addictive-it-s-mostly-the-narcotic-appeal-of/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [More than any other modern tool, computers are a total mystery to their users. Most people never open them up to fix them or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/more-than-any-other-modern-tool-computers-are-a-total-mystery-to/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [When you broadcast your book reading voluntarily, it creates moments of fascinating serendipity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/when-you-broadcast-your-book-reading-voluntarily-it-creates-moments/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [The only reason we don't notice how absolutely interwoven our thinking processes have become with older technologies - pencils, paper, electric light, penicillin, fire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/the-only-reason-we-don-t-notice-how-absolutely-interwoven-our/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [“While reading Kasparov’s book How Life Imitates Chess on my Kindle, I idly clicked on “popular highlights” to see what passages other readers had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/while-reading-kasparov-s-book-how-life-imitates-chess-on-my-kindle-i/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [The main message of 'Smarter Than You Think' is an attempt to look at the productively new and interesting ways that we have begun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/the-main-message-of-smarter-than-you-think-is-an-attempt-to-look-at/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [There is something about the ability to externalize our thoughts and compare them with other people in a public way that is really transformative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/there-is-something-about-the-ability-to-externalize-our-thoughts-and/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [Type as quickly as you can and always carry a pencil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/type-as-quickly-as-you-can-and-always-carry-a-pencil/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [I don't think the Internet has replaced cities in any significant way, nor really could it. Cities are dynamic - and deeply seductive for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/i-don-t-think-the-internet-has-replaced-cities-in-any-significant-way/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [Railing at scientists for massaging tree-ring statistics won't stop the globe from warming if the globe is actually, you know, warming.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/railing-at-scientists-for-massaging-tree-ring-statistics-won-t-stop/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [Transactive memory works best when you have a sense of how your partners' minds work - where they're strong, where they're weak, where their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/transactive-memory-works-best-when-you-have-a-sense-of-how-your/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) > [The amount of writing that people do online is astonishing, and historically unprecedented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-thompson/the-amount-of-writing-that-people-do-online-is-astonishing-and/) [Clive Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) [Explore all 43 Clive Thompson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-thompson/) ## More Actor quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I once told someone I could act. They totally bought it. 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. Goyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-s-goyer/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When I was 13, I auditioned for the theater school, and I was there for four years. In the meantime, I did my first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-de-armas/when-i-was-13-i-auditioned-for-the-theater-school-and-i-was-there-for/) [Ana de Armas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-de-armas/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) > [Actors don't hate acting. Most people don't hate acting! Whether you're a child mucking around with your friends or a grown up being paid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-hewson/actors-don-t-hate-acting-most-people-don-t-hate-acting-whether-you-re/) [Liv Hewson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-hewson/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [I never planned to do female roles. It just happened. 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": "Plays are frequently infected with ideas that came from actors or even sound engineers. 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