--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I didn't particularly aim to be a…" description: "\"I didn't particularly aim to be a Shakespeare actor, but I suppose I had a certain gift or it; I certainly got offered lots of it. I liked Complicite a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ddd/mark-rylance-10062_actor_i-didn-t-particularly-aim-to-be-a-shakes_2161893.jpg" --- # I didn't particularly aim to be a Shakespeare actor, but I… ![“I didn't particularly aim to be a Shakespeare actor, but I suppose I had a certain gift or it; I certainly got offered lots of it. I liked Complicite and Shared Experience and Kick Theatre, and all the small theatre companies that were getting going. I wanted to be like that, making original…” quote by Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ddd/mark-rylance-10062_actor_i-didn-t-particularly-aim-to-be-a-shakes_2161893.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ddd/mark-rylance-10062_actor_i-didn-t-particularly-aim-to-be-a-shakes_2161893.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ddd/mark-rylance-10062_actor_i-didn-t-particularly-aim-to-be-a-shakes_2161893.jpg) > “I didn't particularly aim to be a Shakespeare actor, but I suppose I had a certain gift or it; I certainly got offered lots of it. I liked Complicite and Shared Experience and Kick Theatre, and all the small theatre companies that were getting going. I wanted to be like that, making original theatre.” [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He valued originality and community in theatre, not fame, and embraced roles that matched his gifts. **In simple terms:** He pursued authentic, collaborative theatre work. Key Takeaway Prioritize creative integrity over status. Themes art authenticity collaboration Mood contemplative encouraging Type artistic career When to use this quote - small theatre projects - acting workshops - directing experiments Key Concepts theatre career development creativity Questions to Reflect On - How can you nurture originality while reaching wider audiences? - What small steps can you take to support emerging artists? A Different Perspective Risk of limiting exposure by staying niche. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experience/) [Gift](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gift/) [Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shakespeare/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) ## Related quotes > [I did audition a lot. One's agent is keen to get you into film and TV because there's more money. I was always getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/i-did-audition-a-lot-one-s-agent-is-keen-to-get-you-into-film-and-tv/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [I no longer believe that William Shakespeare the actor from Stratford was the author of the works that have been ascribed to him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/i-no-longer-believe-that-william-shakespeare-the-actor-from-stratford/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [ \[on whether he harbored any resentment at his forced retirement from the stage after he was fired by Britain's National Theater\] I should be… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-olivier/on-whether-he-harbored-any-resentment-at-his-forced-retirement-from/) [Laurence Olivier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-olivier/) > [I would hope that the Government would still support those small, struggling independent theatre companies and also maybe look to the built architecture of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-dunbar/i-would-hope-that-the-government-would-still-support-those-small/) [Adrian Dunbar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-dunbar/) > [Sometimes you can do Shakespeare and you're still not an actor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-gregg/sometimes-you-can-do-shakespeare-and-you-re-still-not-an-actor/) [Clark Gregg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-gregg/) > [I should be soaring away with my head tilted slightly toward the gods, feeding on the caviar of Shakespeare. An actor must act.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-olivier/i-should-be-soaring-away-with-my-head-tilted-slightly-toward-the-gods/) [Laurence Olivier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-olivier/) > [“Nernst was a great admirer of Shakespeare, and it is said that in a conference concerned with naming units after appropriate persons, he proposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-partington/nernst-was-a-great-admirer-of-shakespeare-and-it-is-said-that-in-a/) J.R. Partington > [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [“Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “There is nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-robinson/shakespeare-s-hamlet-there-is-nothing-either-good-or-bad-but-thinking/) [Ken Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-robinson/) > [The difficulty with poetry is that it doesn't have the life that Shakespeare or Jane Austen have beyond the page. You can't make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/the-difficulty-with-poetry-is-that-it-doesn-t-have-the-life-that/) [Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/) > [“It was wonderful flirting with him, all the razor-edged literary banter, like Beatrice and Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. A battle of wit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wein/it-was-wonderful-flirting-with-him-all-the-razor-edged-literary/) [Elizabeth Wein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wein/) > [Anything well written with good language and clarity and honesty is worth doing. It comes out of the same tradition as Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-moriarty/anything-well-written-with-good-language-and-clarity-and-honesty-is/) [Michael Moriarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-moriarty/) > [Its extremely dangerous to compare anyone else to Shakespeare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/its-extremely-dangerous-to-compare-anyone-else-to-shakespeare/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [“This was going to be worse than the time I table danced in the diner in high school!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-bryson/this-was-going-to-be-worse-than-the-time-i-table-danced-in-the-diner/) [Kathy Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-bryson/) > [It's like saying French shouldn't be taught because you don't understand it because it's new. Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) ## More by Mark Rylance > [But to me I find Francis Bacon the most likely candidate to be the author.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/but-to-me-i-find-francis-bacon-the-most-likely-candidate-to-be-the/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [I've always looked at famous actors and hope that once they get a part that they have success in, they would reprise it every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/i-ve-always-looked-at-famous-actors-and-hope-that-once-they-get-a/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [I certainly never pictured myself even attending the Academy Awards, much less winning at 56. I very, very happily settled into a theater career.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/i-certainly-never-pictured-myself-even-attending-the-academy-awards/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [In a way, I think science is the modern religion, and at times, I despise it as much as I despise other religions because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/in-a-way-i-think-science-is-the-modern-religion-and-at-times-i/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [So there's a lot of people tied into believing that the traditional response to the authorship question. In terms of actors, some people get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/so-there-s-a-lot-of-people-tied-into-believing-that-the-traditional/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [My understanding is that we are generally a very philanthropic and compassionate people - that when there are disasters in the world, individual citizens…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/my-understanding-is-that-we-are-generally-a-very-philanthropic-and/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [Every great filmmaker at some moment makes a war film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/every-great-filmmaker-at-some-moment-makes-a-war-film/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [There were terrific shows on TV like 'Star Trek' and 'Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea' and 'Wild Wild West.' All us kids…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/there-were-terrific-shows-on-tv-like-star-trek-and-voyage-to-the/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [I love film. I love going to see films; I always have. I've done quite a few.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/i-love-film-i-love-going-to-see-films-i-always-have-i-ve-done-quite-a/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [It's an important thing for children to be able to make up their own words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/it-s-an-important-thing-for-children-to-be-able-to-make-up-their-own/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [Great actors try to dismiss all ideas from their conscious mind in order to provide an experience that is real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/great-actors-try-to-dismiss-all-ideas-from-their-conscious-mind-in/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [You try, as an actor, to wear a mask; you're serving a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/you-try-as-an-actor-to-wear-a-mask-you-re-serving-a-story/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [But I find with Francis Bacon, some of the things were in the place, and someone who was connected with these schools of thought,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/but-i-find-with-francis-bacon-some-of-the-things-were-in-the-place/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [My accent does slip. When I arrived in England in 1978 at 18, I was shocked to find myself 'the American' at RADA. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/my-accent-does-slip-when-i-arrived-in-england-in-1978-at-18-i-was/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) > [But I don't sit down at dinner and have clever ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-rylance/but-i-don-t-sit-down-at-dinner-and-have-clever-ideas/) [Mark Rylance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) [Explore all 68 Mark Rylance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-rylance/) ## 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": "I didn't particularly aim to be a Shakespeare actor, but I suppose I had a certain gift or it; I certainly got offered lots of it. I liked Complicite and Shared Experience and Kick Theatre, and all the small theatre companies that were getting going. 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