I think a part of the reason that those early plays were short was that I just kept having these ideas, and I'd just go off and write them. I wasn't trying to write one-act plays - it's just how the ideas would be expressed. Every condition I was in seemed like it could be a play. Sam Shepard actconditionearly share on social
Film acting is really the trick of doing moments. You rarely do a take that lasts more than 20 seconds. You really earn your spurs acting onstage. I needed to do that for myself. I would hate to say at the end of everything that I never did a stage play. Sam Shepard actearnend share on social
I got to New York when I was eighteen. I was knocking around, trying to be an actor, writer, musician, whatever happened. Sam Shepard actoreighteenhappen Change image and share on social
I never considered myself a movie star, and I didn't want to become a movie star, because as soon as you do, you throw away that possibility of playing character. You really do. All of a sudden you're just an entity, you know? Sam Shepard characterconsiderentity share on social
I feel like the writers that I'm drawn to, the writers that I really cling to, are the writers who seem to be writing out of a desperate act. It's like their writing is part of a survival kit. Those are the writers that I just absolutely cherish and carry with me everywhere I go. Sam Shepard absolutelyactcarry share on social
The great thing for me, now, is that writing has become more and more interesting. Not just as a craft but as a way into things that are not described. It's a thing of discovering. That's when writing is really working. You're on the trail of something, and you don't quite know what it is. Sam Shepard craftdiscovergreat share on social
There are places where writing is acting and acting is writing. I'm not so interested in the divisions. I'm interested in the way things cross over. Sam Shepard actcrossdivision Change image and share on social
To sing a song is quite different than to write a poem. I'm not and never will be a novelist, but to write a novel is not the same thing as writing a play. There is a difference in form, but essentially what you're after is the same thing. Sam Shepard differenceessentiallyform share on social
For me, playwriting is and has always been like making a chair. Your concerns are balance, form, timing, lights, space, music. If you don't have these essentials, you might as well be writing a theoretical essay, not a play. Sam Shepard balancechairconcern share on social