I get stage fright and gremlins in my head saying: 'You're going to forget your lines'.
Interpretation
The fear of performance can be overwhelming, but acknowledging it is the first step to overcoming it.
In this quote, Alan Rickman opens up about his personal struggle with stage fright, revealing the inner doubts and fears that plague many performers. He shares a relatable sentiment that even seasoned actors can feel anxious about forgetting their lines, highlighting the courage it takes to face these fears and continue to perform despite them.
In practice
This quote is perfect to share before a school play to encourage students facing their fears.
Film has to be reflecting the world that we live in, and that's all you want to be a part of. Actors inhabit the same planet as everyone else. It's a weird thing that happens when you're an actor because people hold you up because you somehow embody in parts groups of people or people's hopes or something.
You can act truthfully or you can lie. You can reveal things about yourself or you can hide. Therefore, the audience recognizes something about themselves or they don't -- You hope they don't leave the theatre thinking that was nice...now where's the cab?'
I'm a lot less serious than people think, it's probably because the way my face is put together.
Those of you who are not aware of my brilliant career as a stand up comic, I'm not aware of it either so we might well wonder what we're doing here.
Acting is mostly about listening. If you just focus in on what the other person is saying, acting takes care of itself to quite a large extent.
When I am asked about influences, I always say I bow down to Fred Astaire, because when you look at him dancing you never look at his extremities, do you? You look at his centre. What you never see is the hours of work that went into the routines, you just see the breathtaking spirit and freedom.
Friends have asked how I came to engender this American antagonism. My prodigious sin was, and still is, being a non-conformist. Although I am not a Communist I refused to fall in line by hating them. Secondly, I was opposed to the Committee on Un-American Activities - a dishonest phrase to begin with, elastic enough to wrap around the throat and strangle the voice of any American citizen whose honest opinion is a minority of one.
Go back?" he thought. "No good at all! Go sideways? Impossible! Go forward? Only thing to do! On we go!" So up he got, and trotted along with his little sword held in front of him and one hand feeling the wall, and his heart all of a patter and a pitter.
Some people say, βNever let them see you cry.β I say, if youβre so mad you could just cry, then cry. It terrifies everyone.
As long as gay people don't have their rights all across America, there's no reason for celebration.
I'm not afraid to take a stand. Everybody come take my hand. We'll walk this road together, through the storm. Whatever weather, cold or warm. Just let you know that, you're not alone. Holla if you feel that you've been down the same road.
The greatest heroes of the Normandy battlefield were the unarmed medics, whom snipers often shot at despite their Red Cross armbands.
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