--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you approach an opera as though it…" description: "\"If you approach an opera as though it were something that always went a certain way, that's what you get. I approach an opera as though I didn't know i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72d/sarah-caldwell-33024_approach_if-you-approach-an-opera-as-though-it-we_461817.jpg" --- # If you approach an opera as though it were something that… ![“If you approach an opera as though it were something that always went a certain way, that's what you get. I approach an opera as though I didn't know it.” quote by Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72d/sarah-caldwell-33024_approach_if-you-approach-an-opera-as-though-it-we_461817.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72d/sarah-caldwell-33024_approach_if-you-approach-an-opera-as-though-it-we_461817.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/72d/sarah-caldwell-33024_approach_if-you-approach-an-opera-as-though-it-we_461817.jpg) > “If you approach an opera as though it were something that always went a certain way, that's what you get. I approach an opera as though I didn't know it.” [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Expecting predictability limits discovery; approaching with openness invites surprise and depth. **In simple terms:** Open mind reveals new layers. Key Takeaway Stay curious, avoid assumptions. Themes creativity open‑mindedness performance Mood reflective inquisitive Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - watching opera - learning new skills - first encounters with art Key Concepts improvisation expectation management Questions to Reflect On - How do you keep expectations in check? - What does openness bring to your work? A Different Perspective Assuming patterns can also lead to fresh interpretations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Approach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approach/) [Approach Opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approach-opera-4010530/) [Certain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain/) [Certain way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/certain-way/) [Opera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera/) [Opera Didn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera-didn-1305040/) [Opera Went](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opera-went-582443/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) ## Related quotes > [In the early '80s when I came to London, I didn't like opera. I didn't know anything about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-enfield/in-the-early-80s-when-i-came-to-london-i-didn-t-like-opera-i-didn-t/) [Harry Enfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-enfield/) > [I didn't grow up imagining myself as an opera composer. Only once in my entire adolescence did I attend an opera. I went and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-adams/i-didn-t-grow-up-imagining-myself-as-an-opera-composer-only-once-in/) [John Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-adams/) > [“I kept looking around the bleachers at the audience, middle-aged people in practical clothes. Every single one of them cared about love, but how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elif-batuman/i-kept-looking-around-the-bleachers-at-the-audience-middle-aged/) [Elif Batuman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elif-batuman/) > [The first opera I went to see was Maria Callas singing 'Tosca'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-faithfull/the-first-opera-i-went-to-see-was-maria-callas-singing-tosca/) [Marianne Faithfull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-faithfull/) > [So my methodological approach is to draw on many different features in highlighting different facets of the novella (and the opera and the film).](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kitcher/so-my-methodological-approach-is-to-draw-on-many-different-features/) [Philip Kitcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kitcher/) > [I love not to be busy in a certain way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ghosn/i-love-not-to-be-busy-in-a-certain-way/) [Carlos Ghosn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ghosn/) > [“I used to think I had to act a certain way to follow God, but now I know God doesn’t want us to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-goff/i-used-to-think-i-had-to-act-a-certain-way-to-follow-god-but-now-i/) [Bob Goff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-goff/) > [You're born a certain way, but you don't gotta die like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-east/you-re-born-a-certain-way-but-you-don-t-gotta-die-like-that/) [Dave East](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-east/) > [I've always thought it was important not to attach too much superstition to the space where you're writing, because once you get into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sadie-jones/i-ve-always-thought-it-was-important-not-to-attach-too-much/) [Sadie Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sadie-jones/) > [I try to listen to a lot of music when I'm in the mixing process of a record, when I'm in post-production and trying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-reatard/i-try-to-listen-to-a-lot-of-music-when-i-m-in-the-mixing-process-of-a/) [Jay Reatard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-reatard/) > [Art should not have to be a certain way,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willem-de-kooning/art-should-not-have-to-be-a-certain-way/) [Willem de Kooning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willem-de-kooning/) > [Each production has certain circumstances that will bring you to a certain way of making it. It is not intentional, it is not an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wong-kar-wai/each-production-has-certain-circumstances-that-will-bring-you-to-a/) [Wong Kar-wai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wong-kar-wai/) > [It's interesting how sleepwalking in a certain way becomes an accumulation of your outside stimuli that's actually there and what's happening in your brain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-birbiglia/it-s-interesting-how-sleepwalking-in-a-certain-way-becomes-an/) [Mike Birbiglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-birbiglia/) > [I think being on a TV show is amazing but also, people get kind of used to seeing you a certain way and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aubrey-plaza/i-think-being-on-a-tv-show-is-amazing-but-also-people-get-kind-of/) [Aubrey Plaza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aubrey-plaza/) > [You can get pigeonholed in Hollywood and people think of you in a certain way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-wilson/you-can-get-pigeonholed-in-hollywood-and-people-think-of-you-in-a/) [Luke Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-wilson/) ## More by Sarah Caldwell > [That's what it is that you rehearse - the making of music, not the playing of notes as abstractions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/that-s-what-it-is-that-you-rehearse-the-making-of-music-not-the/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [The secret of living is to find people who will pay you money to do what YOU would pay to do if you had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/the-secret-of-living-is-to-find-people-who-will-pay-you-money-to-do/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [The fact is that great musical pieces take and hold the stage because they provide great emotional experiences.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/the-fact-is-that-great-musical-pieces-take-and-hold-the-stage-because/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [Once in a while, when everything is just right, there is a moment of magic. People can live on moments of magic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/once-in-a-while-when-everything-is-just-right-there-is-a-moment-of/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [Music - opera particularly - is a process which is endurable or successful only if it is achieved by people who love to collaborate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/music-opera-particularly-is-a-process-which-is-endurable-or/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [We must continuously discipline ourselves to I remember how it felt the first moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/we-must-continuously-discipline-ourselves-to-i-remember-how-it-felt/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [I enjoy doing both of them very much, concert work particularly, and the division varies from season to season.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/i-enjoy-doing-both-of-them-very-much-concert-work-particularly-and/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [Opera is everything rolled into one - music, theater, the dance, color and voices and theatrical illusions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/opera-is-everything-rolled-into-one-music-theater-the-dance-color-and/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [If you can sell green toothpaste in this country, you can sell opera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/if-you-can-sell-green-toothpaste-in-this-country-you-can-sell-opera/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [ Tanglewood \[summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra\] was a place where gods strode the earth. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/tanglewood-summer-home-of-the-boston-symphony-orchestra-was-a-place/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [Learn everything you can, anytime you can, from anyone you can - there will always come a time when you will be grateful you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/learn-everything-you-can-anytime-you-can-from-anyone-you-can-there/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [As the director of an opera, it is my responsibility to unify the style of the particular performance, but one can certainly approach the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/as-the-director-of-an-opera-it-is-my-responsibility-to-unify-the/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [Raving mad is quite easy. You just chew up the scenery or something. It's quiet mad that's hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/raving-mad-is-quite-easy-you-just-chew-up-the-scenery-or-something-it/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) > [Success is important only to the extent that it puts one in a position to do more things one likes to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-caldwell/success-is-important-only-to-the-extent-that-it-puts-one-in-a/) [Sarah Caldwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) [Explore all 15 Sarah Caldwell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-caldwell/) ## More Approach quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [I'm in a business where there's complete anarchy. You can't control it - you can only react to it. The control that people traditionally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-sorrell/i-m-in-a-business-where-there-s-complete-anarchy-you-can-t-control-it/) [Martin Sorrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-sorrell/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [One of the things I regret about not putting in that book or I think it's there but I didn't really elaborate on it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/one-of-the-things-i-regret-about-not-putting-in-that-book-or-i-think/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [Ideal for the child and society in the best of times, Rudolf Steiner's brilliant process of education is critically needed and profoundly relevant now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-chilton-pearce/ideal-for-the-child-and-society-in-the-best-of-times-rudolf-steiner-s/) [Joseph Chilton Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-chilton-pearce/) > [I don't have any particular method, my approach is very simple. I try to understand the emotional graph of the character.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pratik-gandhi/i-don-t-have-any-particular-method-my-approach-is-very-simple-i-try/) [Pratik Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pratik-gandhi/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everything, every part that you approach has to be somehow rooted in yourself. You have to somehow root everything so that it's not just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judi-dench/everything-every-part-that-you-approach-has-to-be-somehow-rooted-in/) [Judi Dench](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judi-dench/) > [Literature transforms and intensifies ordinary language, deviates systematically from everyday speech. If you approach me at a bus stop and murmur Thou still unravished…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/literature-transforms-and-intensifies-ordinary-language-deviates/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [The whole secret to mastering the game of golf - and this applies to the beginner as well as the pro - is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-palmer/the-whole-secret-to-mastering-the-game-of-golf-and-this-applies-to/) [Arnold Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-palmer/) > [The essence of Christianity...is an ever-new encounter with... the God who speaks to us, who approaches us and who befriends us!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-benedict-xvi/the-essence-of-christianity-is-an-ever-new-encounter-with-the-god-who/) [Pope Benedict XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-benedict-xvi/) > [Like a morning dream, life becomes more and more bright the longer we live, and the reason of everything appears more clear. What has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul/like-a-morning-dream-life-becomes-more-and-more-bright-the-longer-we/) [Jean Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul/) > [What begins as a Utopian vision, always - always - ends in bloodshed. Because you have to force a utopia on a free people.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/what-begins-as-a-utopian-vision-always-always-ends-in-bloodshed/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [The only two good words that can be said for a hurricane are that it gives sufficient warning of its approach, and that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-atherton/the-only-two-good-words-that-can-be-said-for-a-hurricane-are-that-it/) [Gertrude Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-atherton/) [Browse all 3,949 Approach quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/approach/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you approach an opera as though it were something that always went a certain way, that's what you get. 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