--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Actors like to know who they are playing…" description: "\"Actors like to know who they are playing, what they are thinking, feeling, meaning, intending at any one time.\" — Sean Mathias" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/sean-mathias-34428_like_actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing_1678428.jpg" --- # Actors like to know who they are playing, what they are… ![“Actors like to know who they are playing, what they are thinking, feeling, meaning, intending at any one time.” quote by Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/sean-mathias-34428_like_actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing_1678428.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/sean-mathias-34428_like_actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing_1678428.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/sean-mathias-34428_like_actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing_1678428.jpg) > “Actors like to know who they are playing, what they are thinking, feeling, meaning, intending at any one time.” [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Actors must deeply understand their characters’ thoughts, feelings, and intentions at every moment. **In simple terms:** Actors need full character insight. Key Takeaway Study characters comprehensively. Themes acting character analysis empathy Mood analytical creative Type professional artistic When to use this quote - rehearsal - character workshops - script breakdowns Key Concepts method acting psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance analysis and instinct? - When should you trust intuition over study? A Different Perspective Over‑analysis can hinder spontaneity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Actor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actor/) [Actors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actors/) [Actors Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/actors-like-256918/) [Intending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intending/) [Know Playing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-playing-476049/) [Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like/) [Meaning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaning/) [Playing Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/playing-thinking-932478/) [Theatre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theatre/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Who](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/who/) ## Related quotes > [In any sport, you're at your best when you're playing without thinking too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gareth-southgate/in-any-sport-you-re-at-your-best-when-you-re-playing-without-thinking/) [Gareth Southgate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gareth-southgate/) > [You don't win tournaments by playing well and thinking poorly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-westwood/you-don-t-win-tournaments-by-playing-well-and-thinking-poorly/) [Lee Westwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-westwood/) > [I rarely end up where I was intending to go, but often I end up somewhere I needed to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/i-rarely-end-up-where-i-was-intending-to-go-but-often-i-end-up/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“You are horrified at our intending to do away with private property. But in your existing society private property is already done away with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-marx/you-are-horrified-at-our-intending-to-do-away-with-private-property-2/) [Karl Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-marx/) > [“A lesson for you, Mr. Grim: Intending an action and doing it are far from the same thing. Until you are right there, with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/violet-haberdasher/a-lesson-for-you-mr-grim-intending-an-action-and-doing-it-are-far/) [Violet Haberdasher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/violet-haberdasher/) > [I do feel very honored to get all this attention. Basically, what I need to do is to go out there and perform. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masahiro-tanaka/i-do-feel-very-honored-to-get-all-this-attention-basically-what-i/) [Masahiro Tanaka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masahiro-tanaka/) > [Actually, with 'Truth of Touch' I wasn't even intending on making an album. I was just having fun. I had about a six-month period…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yanni/actually-with-truth-of-touch-i-wasn-t-even-intending-on-making-an/) [Yanni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yanni/) > [I'm not a person who puts things out in writing and policy prescriptions and is not intending to follow through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-lightfoot/i-m-not-a-person-who-puts-things-out-in-writing-and-policy/) [Lori Lightfoot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-lightfoot/) > [I'm intending to work on juvenile justice reform, sentencing reform, reentry, drug treatment, access to mental health care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-booker/i-m-intending-to-work-on-juvenile-justice-reform-sentencing-reform/) [Cory Booker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-booker/) > [I admit that I am hopelessly hooked on the printed newspaper. 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Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vernon-l-smith/) > [Anyone can see that intending and not acting when we can is not really intending, and loving and not doing good when we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emanuel-swedenborg/anyone-can-see-that-intending-and-not-acting-when-we-can-is-not/) [Emanuel Swedenborg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emanuel-swedenborg/) > [It may not be proper for me, perhaps, to let my feelings carry me further am therefore resigned to stop here, if sir, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-gadsden/it-may-not-be-proper-for-me-perhaps-to-let-my-feelings-carry-me/) [Christopher Gadsden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-gadsden/) ## More by Sean Mathias > [If I feel I've missed out something, it's properly running a theatre. That would be thrilling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/if-i-feel-i-ve-missed-out-something-it-s-properly-running-a-theatre/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [Waiting for Godot' is not an easy play to discover. It is a play that makes us face our own fragile existence. And what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/waiting-for-godot-is-not-an-easy-play-to-discover-it-is-a-play-that/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [In your 20s, 30s, early 40s, you work with such a lot of different people, and then suddenly you just can't retain all those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/in-your-20s-30s-early-40s-you-work-with-such-a-lot-of-different/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [I love putting a show together, because it's like the chase - I think my masculine side enjoys it most, the aggression of putting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/i-love-putting-a-show-together-because-it-s-like-the-chase-i-think-my/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [I think it's the duty of the artist to run away from home. 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It's about getting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/i-m-fascinated-by-what-lies-beneath-the-surface-if-you-manage-to-put/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [Directing 'Two Plays in Rep' has brought me the greatest professional satisfaction I have ever known.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/directing-two-plays-in-rep-has-brought-me-the-greatest-professional/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [The strange thing about directing, for me, was that opportunities arose; I'd had some nice roles as an actor, but it just never happened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/the-strange-thing-about-directing-for-me-was-that-opportunities-arose/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [Working in New York, even when the reception has been less than sunny, has always brought me great fulfillment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/working-in-new-york-even-when-the-reception-has-been-less-than-sunny/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [The first American show I did was on Broadway, which was quite a good start.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/the-first-american-show-i-did-was-on-broadway-which-was-quite-a-good/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) > [I didn't go to university. I don't have an academic background.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/i-didn-t-go-to-university-i-don-t-have-an-academic-background/) [Sean Mathias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) [Explore all 14 Sean Mathias quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/) ## 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! 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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": "Actors like to know who they are playing, what they are thinking, feeling, meaning, intending at any one time.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sean Mathias" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing-what-they-are-thinking/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Actor" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing-what-they-are-thinking/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/sean-mathias-34428_like_actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing_1678428.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/sean-mathias-34428_like_actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing_1678428.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e1a/sean-mathias-34428_like_actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing_1678428.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Actors like to know who they are playing, what they are thinking, feeling, meaning, intending at any one time.” — Sean Mathias", "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": "Sean Mathias", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mathias/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Actors like to know who they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing-what-they-are-thinking/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mathias/actors-like-to-know-who-they-are-playing-what-they-are-thinking/#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 } } ] } ```