to whom it may concern:

The Actors’ Vow

– #EliaKazan

I will take my rightful place on the stage 
And I will be myself. 
I am not a cosmic orphan, I have no reason to be timid. 
I will respond as I feel; awkwardly, vulgarly, 
But respond. 
I will have my throat open. 
I will have my heart open. 
I will be vulnerable. 
I may have anything or everything 
The world has to offer, 
But the thing I need most, 
And want most, is to be myself. 
I will admit rejection, admit pain, admit shame, 
Admit outrage, admit anything and 
Everything that happens to me. 
The best and most human parts of me are 
Those I have inhabited and hidden from 
The world. 
I will work on it. 
I will raise my voice. 
I will be heard.