Mind/wallet duality

Before she became a silent movie star, Louise Brooks was a dancer with the Denishawn Company. In 1922/23, they did a tour of 180 US cities in 200 days, a punishing schedule by any standards. Half-way through, the cast was becoming dispirited and tired, and the shows were beginning to suffer. The troupe leader, the redoubtable Ruth St Denis (below), gave Louise a wonderful piece of advice.

Ruth St Denis in 1916

"You must think of it as art, my dear, and then do it as a business."

Neatly sums up what it is to be a professional entertainer, don't you think?