--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Acting is not about dressing up. Acting…" description: "\"Acting is not about dressing up. Acting is about stripping bare. The whole essence of learning lines is to forget them so you can make them sound like ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cd/glenda-jackson-10384_acting_acting-is-not-about-dressing-up-acting-i_1935099.jpg" --- # Acting is not about dressing up. Acting is about stripping… ![“Acting is not about dressing up. Acting is about stripping bare. The whole essence of learning lines is to forget them so you can make them sound like you thought of them that instant.” quote by Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cd/glenda-jackson-10384_acting_acting-is-not-about-dressing-up-acting-i_1935099.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cd/glenda-jackson-10384_acting_acting-is-not-about-dressing-up-acting-i_1935099.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2cd/glenda-jackson-10384_acting_acting-is-not-about-dressing-up-acting-i_1935099.jpg) > “Acting is not about dressing up. Acting is about stripping bare. The whole essence of learning lines is to forget them so you can make them sound like you thought of them that instant.” [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Acting requires shedding pretense and internalizing dialogue so it feels spontaneous, allowing authentic expression. **In simple terms:** Forget the script to act naturally. Key Takeaway Internalize lines for authentic performance. Themes authenticity spontaneity craft Mood inspirational thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - stage play - film set - improvisation - rehearsal Key Concepts method acting psychology of performance Questions to Reflect On - How do you maintain authenticity under pressure? - What practices aid in line internalization? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on spontaneity may cause inconsistency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Acting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acting/) [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Dressing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dressing/) [Essence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essence/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) ## Related quotes > [“I do not see the point in dressing and acting and speaking in a way that makes you feel more comfortable and me feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-pearce/i-do-not-see-the-point-in-dressing-and-acting-and-speaking-in-a-way/) [Dan Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-pearce/) > [I was quite bright, but I didn't do much with it, and I thought acting was dressing up and shouting for a living -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-gomez/i-was-quite-bright-but-i-didn-t-do-much-with-it-and-i-thought-acting/) [Michelle Gomez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-gomez/) > [I wouldn't apply myself at school. I was quite bright, but I didn't do much with it, and I thought acting was dressing up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-gomez/i-wouldn-t-apply-myself-at-school-i-was-quite-bright-but-i-didn-t-do/) [Michelle Gomez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-gomez/) > [Initially I probably didn't even call it acting, but dressing up or something. As a kid I think you fully imagine the world in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugo-weaving/initially-i-probably-didn-t-even-call-it-acting-but-dressing-up-or/) [Hugo Weaving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugo-weaving/) > [“There’s a paradox to most things in life. Acting is often dressing up in frocks and chasing your ego, but that doesn’t mean you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-firth/there-s-a-paradox-to-most-things-in-life-acting-is-often-dressing-up/) [Colin Firth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-firth/) > [The stripping away of illusion and the struggle to find personal reality can be likened to the peeling of an apple. As one peels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-l-young-sowers/the-stripping-away-of-illusion-and-the-struggle-to-find-personal/) [Meredith L. Young-Sowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-l-young-sowers/) > [Wall Street has turned the economy into a giant asset-stripping scheme, one whose purpose is to suck the last bits of meat from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-taibbi/wall-street-has-turned-the-economy-into-a-giant-asset-stripping/) [Matt Taibbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-taibbi/) > [I like to hike and work out at the gym, but I get bored easily. That's when I started doing the stripping classes. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teri-hatcher/i-like-to-hike-and-work-out-at-the-gym-but-i-get-bored-easily-that-s/) [Teri Hatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teri-hatcher/) > [We should demand that (Customs and Border Protection) focus on the true priority that we face on the war on terror... Stripping small amounts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-vitter/we-should-demand-that-customs-and-border-protection-focus-on-the-true/) [David Vitter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-vitter/) > [I like food, I like stripping vegetables of their skins, I like to have a slim young parsnip under my knife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-smith/i-like-food-i-like-stripping-vegetables-of-their-skins-i-like-to-have/) [Stevie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-smith/) > [We had an audition. I was in an office and women came in and started stripping. They had fantastic bums and it's at that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keira-knightley/we-had-an-audition-i-was-in-an-office-and-women-came-in-and-started/) [Keira Knightley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keira-knightley/) > [By stripping down an image to essential meaning, an artist can simplify that meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mccloud/by-stripping-down-an-image-to-essential-meaning-an-artist-can/) [Scott McCloud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mccloud/) > [Suffering is the stripping of our hope in finite things, therefore we do not put our ultimate hope in anything finite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/suffering-is-the-stripping-of-our-hope-in-finite-things-therefore-we/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [Yeah I'm telling real stories, but if you pick up a documentary on strippers, you're going to want to see some stripping, so we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/method-man/yeah-i-m-telling-real-stories-but-if-you-pick-up-a-documentary-on/) [Method Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/method-man/) > [“If she wanted this man to trust her, to open up to her, she would have to strip every last piece of herself away,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dianna-hardy/if-she-wanted-this-man-to-trust-her-to-open-up-to-her-she-would-have/) [Dianna Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dianna-hardy/) ## More by Glenda Jackson > [I studiously avoid any academic dissections of the play and any kind of previous experience of playing. For me, it's all in the play.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/i-studiously-avoid-any-academic-dissections-of-the-play-and-any-kind/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [I look forward to growing old and wise and audacious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/i-look-forward-to-growing-old-and-wise-and-audacious/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [You don't do a play to compete for an award. This was the argument I always had over the Oscars. I didn't win them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/you-don-t-do-a-play-to-compete-for-an-award-this-was-the-argument-i/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [Nobody really needs a mink coat... Except the mink.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/nobody-really-needs-a-mink-coat-except-the-mink/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [Why put make-up on when you only have to take it off again?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/why-put-make-up-on-when-you-only-have-to-take-it-off-again/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [You'd think is something one would grow out of. But you grow into it. The more you do, the more you realize how painfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/you-d-think-is-something-one-would-grow-out-of-but-you-grow-into-it/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [My job is to see the world through the character's eyes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/my-job-is-to-see-the-world-through-the-character-s-eyes/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [No, I'm not recognized in London. What would people recognize?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/no-i-m-not-recognized-in-london-what-would-people-recognize/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [I'm less confident now than I've ever been. In this peculiar craft, confidence is something you spend a lifetime losing. I used to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/i-m-less-confident-now-than-i-ve-ever-been-in-this-peculiar-craft/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [The best teacher is an audience. The ideal performance is when that group of strangers sitting in the dark gets energy from the group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/the-best-teacher-is-an-audience-the-ideal-performance-is-when-that/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [Usually, if there is a woman's part in a piece, there's only one, so you've got no other actresses to work with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/usually-if-there-is-a-woman-s-part-in-a-piece-there-s-only-one-so-you/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [I told them I wouldn't sign a blank cheque.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/i-told-them-i-wouldn-t-sign-a-blank-cheque/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [It would be nice if education was free to everyone who wanted it, but that's not the world we live in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/it-would-be-nice-if-education-was-free-to-everyone-who-wanted-it-but/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [I'm the world's worst bearer of grudges. I'm sure I'll be bearing grudges and paying off old scores on my death-bed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/i-m-the-world-s-worst-bearer-of-grudges-i-m-sure-i-ll-be-bearing/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) > [No, I didn't think of myself as an idealist. I consider myself as a believer in what I regard as the Labour Party's basic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenda-jackson/no-i-didn-t-think-of-myself-as-an-idealist-i-consider-myself-as-a/) [Glenda Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) [Explore all 66 Glenda Jackson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenda-jackson/) ## More Acting 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/) > [Many Republicans have always reminded me of professional WWF wrestlers. They come into the ring all pumped up and acting like they're invincible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/many-republicans-have-always-reminded-me-of-professional-wwf/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [I'm a big fan of all the Boston guys that are acting - Matt Damon , Ben Affleck, Mark Wahlberg - they made a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-wormald/i-m-a-big-fan-of-all-the-boston-guys-that-are-acting-matt-damon-ben/) [Kenny Wormald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-wormald/) > [Acting is a grind, just like music is a grind. Sometimes it takes longer than what you can give.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/big-sean/acting-is-a-grind-just-like-music-is-a-grind-sometimes-it-takes/) [Big Sean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/big-sean/) > [It was only when I started making short films in college and I was looking for girls to play the me-ish parts that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lena-dunham/it-was-only-when-i-started-making-short-films-in-college-and-i-was/) [Lena Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lena-dunham/) > [Writing is something I took up rather than anything I had an inclination toward. I like acting -delivering someone else's message - but writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-martin/writing-is-something-i-took-up-rather-than-anything-i-had-an/) [Steve Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-martin/) > [I can still function when I don't have that balance I crave. I had a tendency to be precious about acting, thinking of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-regan/i-can-still-function-when-i-don-t-have-that-balance-i-crave-i-had-a/) [Laura Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-regan/) > [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/) > [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/) > [It definitely helps to have the acting experience going into singing, because when you're singing, you have to portray the emotion you were feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-newman/it-definitely-helps-to-have-the-acting-experience-going-into-singing/) Ryan Newman > [The show was number one in the ratings, Gordon Russell was our head writer, the story lines were magnificent and the acting most exciting.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-storm/the-show-was-number-one-in-the-ratings-gordon-russell-was-our-head/) [Michael Storm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-storm/) > [I've done so many other projects where you're in a room with a reader and you're acting your lines out: 'We have to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cummings/i-ve-done-so-many-other-projects-where-you-re-in-a-room-with-a-reader/) [Jim Cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cummings/) > [I do not believe in public shaming. I do believe that young adults go to college to learn things, and that this process will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-weingarten/i-do-not-believe-in-public-shaming-i-do-believe-that-young-adults-go/) [Gene Weingarten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-weingarten/) > [Poetry has, in a way, been my bridge to my acting career.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/omari-hardwick/poetry-has-in-a-way-been-my-bridge-to-my-acting-career/) [Omari Hardwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/omari-hardwick/) [Browse all 12,062 Acting quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/acting/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Acting is not about dressing up. Acting is about stripping bare. 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