--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sometimes I think the experience of a…" description: "\"Sometimes I think the experience of a play is finished for me when I finish writing it. If it weren't for the need to make a living, I don't know wheth..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06e/edward-albee-1684_actor_sometimes-i-think-the-experience-of-a-pl_1832473.jpg" --- # Sometimes I think the experience of a play is finished for… ![“Sometimes I think the experience of a play is finished for me when I finish writing it. If it weren't for the need to make a living, I don't know whether I'd have the plays produced.” quote by Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06e/edward-albee-1684_actor_sometimes-i-think-the-experience-of-a-pl_1832473.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06e/edward-albee-1684_actor_sometimes-i-think-the-experience-of-a-pl_1832473.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/06e/edward-albee-1684_actor_sometimes-i-think-the-experience-of-a-pl_1832473.jpg) > “Sometimes I think the experience of a play is finished for me when I finish writing it. If it weren't for the need to make a living, I don't know whether I'd have the plays produced.” [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author reflects that writing plays may be the only way to fully experience them, implying art and livelihood conflict. **In simple terms:** Writing may be the only way to truly experience art. Key Takeaway Balance art and livelihood. Themes creativity artistic integrity livelihood Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type personal creative When to use this quote - theatre - writing - career choices Key Concepts art vs commerce creative process Questions to Reflect On - How do you keep art alive while earning a living? - Can commercial work enhance artistic growth? A Different Perspective May not apply to all artists. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [You are your own scriptwriter and the play is never finished, no matter what your age or position in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/you-are-your-own-scriptwriter-and-the-play-is-never-finished-no/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [I have been both overpraised and underpraised. I assume by the time I finish writing -- and I plan to go on writing until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/i-have-been-both-overpraised-and-underpraised-i-assume-by-the-time-i/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [A play is never finished. You'll find out how much I mean that when you read my Last Will and Testament.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-kushner/a-play-is-never-finished-you-ll-find-out-how-much-i-mean-that-when/) [Tony Kushner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-kushner/) > [If you're going to be a writer you should sit down and write in the morning, and keep it up all day, every day.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-ferlinghetti/if-you-re-going-to-be-a-writer-you-should-sit-down-and-write-in-the/) [Lawrence Ferlinghetti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-ferlinghetti/) > [I'm from Ohio, and I wasn't one of those kids who grew up making movies or whatever, but I always wanted to write. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-leslie-johnson/i-m-from-ohio-and-i-wasn-t-one-of-those-kids-who-grew-up-making/) David Leslie Johnson > [The Sopranos all came down to the writing. 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Whatever you have to do to finish it, finish it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/finish-what-you-re-writing-whatever-you-have-to-do-to-finish-it/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) ## More by Edward Albee > [School curricula that ignore the arts produce highly educated Barbarians](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/school-curricula-that-ignore-the-arts-produce-highly-educated/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [When a critic sets himself up as an arbiter of morality, a judge of the matter and not the manner of a work, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/when-a-critic-sets-himself-up-as-an-arbiter-of-morality-a-judge-of/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [When people don't like the way a play ends, they're likely to blame the play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/when-people-don-t-like-the-way-a-play-ends-they-re-likely-to-blame/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [In a democracy you cannot stop public access to that art that will most misinform the people. You cannot stop people from being misinformed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/in-a-democracy-you-cannot-stop-public-access-to-that-art-that-will/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [Creativity is magic. Don't examine it too closely.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/creativity-is-magic-don-t-examine-it-too-closely/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [When people can't abide things as they are, when they can't abide the present, they do one of two things ... either they ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/when-people-can-t-abide-things-as-they-are-when-they-can-t-abide-the/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [“Lady, you can’t fuck a metaphor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/lady-you-can-t-fuck-a-metaphor/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [I write to find out what I'm talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/i-write-to-find-out-what-i-m-talking-about/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [I know playwrights who like to kid themselves into saying that their characters are so well formed that they just take over. 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Good, better, best, bested.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/dashed-hopes-and-good-intentions-good-better-best-bested/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [Writing has got to be an act of discovery…I write to find out what I'm thinking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/writing-has-got-to-be-an-act-of-discovery-i-write-to-find-out-what-i/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [I'm back in fashion again for a while now. But I imagine that three or four years from now I'll be out again. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/i-m-back-in-fashion-again-for-a-while-now-but-i-imagine-that-three-or/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [What people really want in the theater is fantasy involvement and not reality involvement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/what-people-really-want-in-the-theater-is-fantasy-involvement-and-not/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) > [Art should never try to be popular.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-albee/art-should-never-try-to-be-popular/) [Edward Albee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) [Explore all 216 Edward Albee quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-albee/) ## 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. 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