“Aesthetes have it all over intellectuals in one very important respect: You'll rarely catch us hustling anyone off to the nearest guillotine. We're too busy trying to make the world more beautiful. Our hands are stained with ink and paint, not blood.”

American author, critic, biographer, playwright, stage director, and librettist

Terrance Alan Teachout was an American author, critic, biographer, playwright, stage director, and librettist. He wrote widely about the arts and worked across several forms, including criticism, biography, theatre, and opera. Teachout is known for his work as a cultural critic and writer, with a career that ranged from books and essays to plays and stage work. His writing and creative work often reflected close attention to performance and the arts.