--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No two dramatists think or write alike…" description: "\"No two dramatists think or write alike. Ten thousand playwrights can take the same premise, as they have done since Shakespeare, and not one play will ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/lajos-egri-57579_alike_no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-t_1448449.jpg" --- # No two dramatists think or write alike. Ten thousand… ![“No two dramatists think or write alike. Ten thousand playwrights can take the same premise, as they have done since Shakespeare, and not one play will resemble the other except in the premise. Your knowledge, your understanding of human nature, and your imagination will take care of that.” quote by Lajos Egri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/lajos-egri-57579_alike_no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-t_1448449.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/lajos-egri-57579_alike_no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-t_1448449.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/lajos-egri-57579_alike_no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-t_1448449.jpg) > “No two dramatists think or write alike. Ten thousand playwrights can take the same premise, as they have done since Shakespeare, and not one play will resemble the other except in the premise. Your knowledge, your understanding of human nature, and your imagination will take care of that.” [Lajos Egri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Each playwright brings a unique voice; even with identical premises, their works differ due to personal insight and imagination. **In simple terms:** Writers differ despite same story ideas. Key Takeaway Value individual perspective in storytelling. Themes creativity individuality art Mood inspirational thoughtful Type analytical philosophical When to use this quote - writing workshops - script development - theatre productions - creative collaborations Key Concepts character premise imagination Questions to Reflect On - What makes your story distinct? - How does personal experience shape narrative? A Different Perspective Uniform premises may limit originality. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Alike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alike/) [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Done](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/done/) [Dramatists Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dramatists-think-5202406/) [Except](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/except/) [Human](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human/) [Human nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-nature/) [Imagination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagination/) [Knowledge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knowledge/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Other](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/other/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Playwrights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playwrights/) [Playwrights Premise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playwrights-premise-5202404/) [Premise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/premise/) [Premise Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/premise-shakespeare-5202407/) [Resemble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resemble/) [Same](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/same/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Since](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/since/) [Take](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/take/) [Take care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/take-care/) [Ten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ten/) [Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think/) [Thousand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand/) [Thousand Playwrights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-playwrights-5202405/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Understanding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/understanding/) [Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/will/) [Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Your](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/your/) ## Related quotes > [“Always resemble yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-white/always-resemble-yourself/) [Cynthia White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-white/) > [Bridges with cables very easily resemble stringed instruments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santiago-calatrava/bridges-with-cables-very-easily-resemble-stringed-instruments/) [Santiago Calatrava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santiago-calatrava/) > [I want my family to resemble the family I came from.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-heigl/i-want-my-family-to-resemble-the-family-i-came-from/) [Katherine Heigl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-heigl/) > [Earth might one day soon resemble the planet Venus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/earth-might-one-day-soon-resemble-the-planet-venus/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I would love to play the President of the United States. I have been told we resemble each other, and it would be a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-hardrict/i-would-love-to-play-the-president-of-the-united-states-i-have-been/) [Cory Hardrict](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-hardrict/) > [“In time, they have lost their personalities and begun to resemble each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mustafa-donmez/in-time-they-have-lost-their-personalities-and-begun-to-resemble-each/) [Mustafa Donmez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mustafa-donmez/) > [“Next to me was Jacob, this riddle Laurie and I had made. His size, his resemblance to me, the likelihood that he would fill…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-landay/next-to-me-was-jacob-this-riddle-laurie-and-i-had-made-his-size-his/) [William Landay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-landay/) > [My people are few. They resemble the scattering trees of a storm-swept plain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chief-seattle/my-people-are-few-they-resemble-the-scattering-trees-of-a-storm-swept/) [Chief Seattle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chief-seattle/) > [Originally I was opposed to gay assimilation and targeted gay marriage as just another effort on the part of gays to resemble their straight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-white/originally-i-was-opposed-to-gay-assimilation-and-targeted-gay/) [Edmund White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-white/) > [I really love Penelope Cruz, because she has the tan skin. I think it's important to look at people who resemble you and see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffany-dupont/i-really-love-penelope-cruz-because-she-has-the-tan-skin-i-think-it-s/) [Tiffany Dupont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffany-dupont/) > [Politics has come to resemble a cynical team game played by politicians, while the public has been pushed aside as if sitting on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edi-rama/politics-has-come-to-resemble-a-cynical-team-game-played-by/) [Edi Rama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edi-rama/) > [Do not resemble me-Never be like a musk melon Cut in two identical halves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matsuo-basho/do-not-resemble-me-never-be-like-a-musk-melon-cut-in-two-identical/) [Matsuo Basho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matsuo-basho/) > [You tell me you love me, but Im not sure you know what love is, or how fast it flies, or how much it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hussein-nishah/you-tell-me-you-love-me-but-im-not-sure-you-know-what-love-is-or-how/) [Hussein Nishah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hussein-nishah/) > [“The more time you spend with God, the more you will resemble Him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-george/the-more-time-you-spend-with-god-the-more-you-will-resemble-him/) [Elizabeth George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-george/) > [“One's own character inevitably comes to resemble the things one spends most of one's day with.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antiphon/one-s-own-character-inevitably-comes-to-resemble-the-things-one/) [Antiphon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antiphon/) ## More by Lajos Egri > [No, you don't have to start your play with a premise. You can start with a character or an incident, or even a simple…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/no-you-don-t-have-to-start-your-play-with-a-premise-you-can-start/) [Lajos Egri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/) > [Immortality. We all want to be remembered: We want to do things that will make people say, 'Isn't he wonderful?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/immortality-we-all-want-to-be-remembered-we-want-to-do-things-that/) [Lajos Egri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/) > [“Two or three million years ago, the Earth was a ball of fire, revolving arround it's own axis. It took millions of years to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/two-or-three-million-years-ago-the-earth-was-a-ball-of-fire-revolving/) [Lajos Egri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/) > [Although you should never mention your premise in the dialogue of your play, the audience must know what the message is. And whatever it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/although-you-should-never-mention-your-premise-in-the-dialogue-of/) [Lajos Egri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/) > [Everything has a purpose or premise. Every second of our life has its own premise, whether or not we are conscious of it at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/everything-has-a-purpose-or-premise-every-second-of-our-life-has-its/) [Lajos Egri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/) [Explore all 6 Lajos Egri quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/) ## 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": "No two dramatists think or write alike. Ten thousand playwrights can take the same premise, as they have done since Shakespeare, and not one play will resemble the other except in the premise. Your knowledge, your understanding of human nature, and your imagination will take care of that.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lajos Egri" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-ten-thousand-playwrights-can/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Actor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-ten-thousand-playwrights-can/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/lajos-egri-57579_alike_no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-t_1448449.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/lajos-egri-57579_alike_no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-t_1448449.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d1e/lajos-egri-57579_alike_no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-t_1448449.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“No two dramatists think or write alike. Ten thousand playwrights can take the same premise, as they have…” — Lajos Egri", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Lajos Egri", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lajos-egri/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "No two dramatists think or write...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-ten-thousand-playwrights-can/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lajos-egri/no-two-dramatists-think-or-write-alike-ten-thousand-playwrights-can/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```