--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've been so spoiled in the theater…" description: "\"I've been so spoiled in the theater, writing plays where I can just do exactly what I want and nobody messes with me.\" — Sam Shepard" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/sam-shepard-2232_been_i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writ_2906112.jpg" --- # I've been so spoiled in the theater, writing plays where I… ![“I've been so spoiled in the theater, writing plays where I can just do exactly what I want and nobody messes with me.” quote by Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/sam-shepard-2232_been_i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writ_2906112.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/sam-shepard-2232_been_i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writ_2906112.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/sam-shepard-2232_been_i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writ_2906112.jpg) > “I've been so spoiled in the theater, writing plays where I can just do exactly what I want and nobody messes with me.” [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Creative control in theater can become indulgent, leading to self‑indulgence and isolation from collaborators. **In simple terms:** Total control may cause selfishness and alienation. Key Takeaway Balance artistic freedom with collaboration. Themes creativity control collaboration Mood reflective critical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - directing a play - writing workshops - ensemble rehearsals Key Concepts theatre studies ego management team dynamics Questions to Reflect On - When does control hinder creativity? - How can you invite others’ input constructively? A Different Perspective Complete autonomy can stifle innovation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Messes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/messes/) [Plays](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/plays/) [Theater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theater/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Ive been so spoiled in the theater, writing plays where I can just do exactly what I want and nobody messes with me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/ive-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writing-plays-where-i-can-just-do/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [I was spoiled by theater, where there is no editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-edwards/i-was-spoiled-by-theater-where-there-is-no-editor/) [Anthony Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-edwards/) > [When I worked in theater, I was always writing things on Post-it Notes and sticking them on screens or desks. Twitter has given me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maureen-johnson/when-i-worked-in-theater-i-was-always-writing-things-on-post-it-notes/) [Maureen Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maureen-johnson/) > [It's really hard to say how long the show will last and will continue. I hope it lasts for a very long time. As…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-burns/it-s-really-hard-to-say-how-long-the-show-will-last-and-will-continue/) [Steve Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-burns/) > [I was not born into the world of the stuntman and the daredevil; I was born into the world of theater and writing and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philippe-petit/i-was-not-born-into-the-world-of-the-stuntman-and-the-daredevil-i-was/) [Philippe Petit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philippe-petit/) > [When you find theater writing like in the theater on film but it's realistic, it doesn't matter who the character is, you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jake-gyllenhaal/when-you-find-theater-writing-like-in-the-theater-on-film-but-it-s/) [Jake Gyllenhaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jake-gyllenhaal/) > [When you're 19 and writing plays, you think every actor is full of it. They just can't handle your brilliant material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/when-you-re-19-and-writing-plays-you-think-every-actor-is-full-of-it/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [It's hard to explain why exactly, but I think that when I began writing plays, it was from an actor's point of view more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/it-s-hard-to-explain-why-exactly-but-i-think-that-when-i-began/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [“No one messes with the Valentines”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-mccarthy/no-one-messes-with-the-valentines/) [Kate McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-mccarthy/) > [Before:) Haha, I make lots of messes when I cook, lol:D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel/before-haha-i-make-lots-of-messes-when-i-cook-lol-d/) [Rachel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel/) > [We are the ones who create the messes in our heads. It does not come from outside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-are-the-ones-who-create-the-messes-in-our-heads-it-does-not-come/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Managers do not solve problems, they manage messes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donella-h-meadows/managers-do-not-solve-problems-they-manage-messes/) [Donella H. Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donella-h-meadows/) > [Creating these messes that go from administration to administration and then you swoop in and clean them up - with that heroic Delta force…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwidge-danticat/creating-these-messes-that-go-from-administration-to-administration/) [Edwidge Danticat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwidge-danticat/) > [If someone messes up, let it go. If they keep messing up, let them go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/if-someone-messes-up-let-it-go-if-they-keep-messing-up-let-them-go/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [“God has a way of picking a “nobody” and turning their world upside down, in order to create a “somebody” that will remove the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/god-has-a-way-of-picking-a-nobody-and-turning-their-world-upside-down/) [Shannon L. Alder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-l-alder/) ## More by Sam Shepard > [I guess what I like is mostly country & western or else stuff that has a real blues feel to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-guess-what-i-like-is-mostly-country-western-or-else-stuff-that-has/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [You can write 16 plays and not make as much money as you did doing one movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/you-can-write-16-plays-and-not-make-as-much-money-as-you-did-doing/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [It's funny, in a way the actor is a writer. It's not like the two things are so separate as to be like apples…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/it-s-funny-in-a-way-the-actor-is-a-writer-it-s-not-like-the-two/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [Character is an essential tendency. It can be covered up, it can be messed with, it can be screwed around with, but it can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/character-is-an-essential-tendency-it-can-be-covered-up-it-can-be/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [Why would you want to be be counseled in your grief? It's too private.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/why-would-you-want-to-be-be-counseled-in-your-grief-it-s-too-private/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [Farm country -- you know, hay, horses, cattle. It's the ideal situation for me. I like the physical endeavors that go with the farm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/farm-country-you-know-hay-horses-cattle-it-s-the-ideal-situation-for/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [I think comedy's harder to pull off on the screen than on the stage, anyway. Tragedy is easier on the screen... oddly enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-think-comedy-s-harder-to-pull-off-on-the-screen-than-on-the-stage/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [“Those are the most monotonous fuckin' crickets I ever heard in my life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/those-are-the-most-monotonous-fuckin-crickets-i-ever-heard-in-my-life/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [All good writing comes out of aloneness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/all-good-writing-comes-out-of-aloneness/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [When I first started in film, I was terrified of the camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/when-i-first-started-in-film-i-was-terrified-of-the-camera/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [I'll develop my own image. I'm an original man. A one and only. I just need some help.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-ll-develop-my-own-image-i-m-an-original-man-a-one-and-only-i-just/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [When I just sit around my house and work, I can work two, three hours, and then I go off and ride a horse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/when-i-just-sit-around-my-house-and-work-i-can-work-two-three-hours/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [Hollywood is geared toward teenage idiocy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/hollywood-is-geared-toward-teenage-idiocy/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [It's my private life, and it's not up for grabs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/it-s-my-private-life-and-it-s-not-up-for-grabs/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) > [Keep away from fantasy. Shake off the image,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/keep-away-from-fantasy-shake-off-the-image/) [Sam Shepard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) [Explore all 176 Sam Shepard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/) ## More Been quotes > [When I was trying to come up with a stage name, I thought 'Lord' was super rad, but really masculine - ever since I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorde/when-i-was-trying-to-come-up-with-a-stage-name-i-thought-lord-was/) [Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorde/) > [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/) > [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/) [Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/) > [Here's the reality. The image of a white Jesus has been used to justify enslavement, conquest, colonialism, the genocide of indigenous peoples. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-wise/here-s-the-reality-the-image-of-a-white-jesus-has-been-used-to/) [Tim Wise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-wise/) > [I would have done well as a gypsy child, I think. A circus baby. I coulda played a great street urchin or ragamuffin. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-lyonne/i-would-have-done-well-as-a-gypsy-child-i-think-a-circus-baby-i/) [Natasha Lyonne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-lyonne/) > [A lot of people have been saying 'The 100' reminds them of 'Lord Of The Flies,' 'Lost' and 'Battlestar Galactica,' and all of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-avgeropoulos/a-lot-of-people-have-been-saying-the-100-reminds-them-of-lord-of-the/) [Marie Avgeropoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-avgeropoulos/) > [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/) > [Well, I've been politically involved for a really long time. Growing up in the segregated South, it was a very painful experience for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cybill-shepherd/well-i-ve-been-politically-involved-for-a-really-long-time-growing-up/) [Cybill Shepherd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cybill-shepherd/) > [I've seen guys come along with more ability - they've been faster or bigger or stronger - but they never worked hard to develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-largent/i-ve-seen-guys-come-along-with-more-ability-they-ve-been-faster-or/) [Steve Largent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-largent/) > [I have always been a big meta guy because I think the way journalism is practiced in Washington, and the way everyone sort of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leibovich/i-have-always-been-a-big-meta-guy-because-i-think-the-way-journalism/) [Mark Leibovich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leibovich/) > [Windmills and solar cells are carbon-free sources of electricity. But they are costly. If you've been investing in those, give it up. That game…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-fisher/windmills-and-solar-cells-are-carbon-free-sources-of-electricity-but/) [Kenneth Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-fisher/) > [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/) > [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [There has always been a feeling with people that they love my singing but not always the choice of material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/there-has-always-been-a-feeling-with-people-that-they-love-my-singing/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [I've always been a believer in research. It's great to have an instinctual human reaction to a character, too, of course, but it has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chiwetel-ejiofor/i-ve-always-been-a-believer-in-research-it-s-great-to-have-an/) [Chiwetel Ejiofor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chiwetel-ejiofor/) Browse all 13,699 Been quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I've been so spoiled in the theater, writing plays where I can just do exactly what I want and nobody messes with me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sam Shepard" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writing-plays-where-i-can-just-do/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Been" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writing-plays-where-i-can-just-do/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/sam-shepard-2232_been_i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writ_2906112.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/sam-shepard-2232_been_i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writ_2906112.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/662/sam-shepard-2232_been_i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writ_2906112.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I've been so spoiled in the theater, writing plays where I can just do exactly what I want and nobody messes…” — Sam Shepard", "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": "Sam Shepard", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-shepard/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I've been so spoiled in the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writing-plays-where-i-can-just-do/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-shepard/i-ve-been-so-spoiled-in-the-theater-writing-plays-where-i-can-just-do/#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 } } ] } ```