 Leigh explained that she played " as many different parts as possible " in an attempt to learn her craft and to dispel prejudice about her abilities . She believed that comedy was more difficult to play than drama because it required more precise timing and said that more emphasis should be placed upon comedy as part of an actor 's training . Nearing the end of her career , which ranged from Noël Coward comedies to Shakespearean tragedies , she observed , " It 's much easier to make people cry than to make them laugh . " 
