Quotes from Theresa Rebeck

I remember when I was at Brandeis, Geoffrey Wolff, he was a great fiction-writing teacher. He was the writer-in-residence, and for those of us who wanted to be writers, you were so excited to be in the same hallway as him.

We have this powerful ideological basis to the country that I don't think any other country in the world quite can brag about. It's a very complicated nation, and it's very fertile.

Does art have to have high foot traffic to get funded in a recession? A lot of people, I am sure, would say absolutely not. And those postmodern art-loving loners surely would argue that even if one person likes a piece of art, that would make a museum worthwhile.

I think it goes without saying that young would-be playwrights in developmental workshops should be so lucky as to write plays as good as 'Waiting for Godot,' 'Uncle Vanya' or 'King Lear,' none of which would have existed without a decent plot.

I have spent my whole life working in the theater, and most of the people I know have done the same. And we are pretty interesting people.

You have to respect who the character is. It has its own internal truth, and you can't betray that. And if you don't betray that, it will not betray you.

I sincerely believe that for the New York theatre to remain relevant, all our major producing institutions should be presenting new American plays.

One thing I won't do in television is a sitcom. I find that world to be so neurotic and bizarre.

I have huge admiration for Jesus Christ and for his incredible compassion for all people.

Why on earth is the 'New Yorker' publishing puff pieces about pretty girls who go to parties? Does the 'New Yorker' ever run photos of cute boys just because they're cute and they come from money and they go to lots of parties?

Moliere and Arthur Miller affected me at a very young age. In adulthood, I became overwhelmed by Chekhov. Those are my big theatrical influences.

We were told that hard work and talent and character would get you somewhere. At school, we learned it was important to share. On Arbor Day, we all planted trees.

I have tremendous affection for New York and my life, but I'm a satirist at heart. And it's easy to satirize New York.

That stupid postmodern emphasis on image over content has slammed us right into a dramaturgy that willfully leaves the audience behind and then resents the fact that they don't 'get it.'

I think that because television is shot on a really fast schedule, and it gets piped into your home on a smaller screen, it's much more about character and dialogue in a lot of cases than the movies are.

Heath Ledger's recent death, like that of River Phoenix, was handled with great care by the press. Anna Nicole Smith's not so much.

I actually think we should be trying to be rigorous in our thinking about television and the way it enters our lives and shapes the way so many people think.

There are so many people from many different classes and ways of life who converge in one space to make a musical.

People kept saying, 'You've made it!' and I was like, 'What have I been doing all this time?' I've always felt successful.

In television, what you are doing is trying to fit your voice into a particular mold.

I do believe that there are monsters out there - and that they are monsters.

Theater is a public space. It is a spectacular space. It is a gathering place.

Art is great. At its best, it engages the intellect and challenges the spirit; it connects us across history and reminds us of our humanity.

I go to museums. I buy art, even. You should see my house; we don't have any wall space left.