Maybe
your astrological sign directed you to the smallest dressing room
you've ever had.
This is the tiniest room I've had since The Saving Grace, which
was 30 years ago, down on the Lower East Side. I don't know whether
it's a step up or a step down from where we [the Urinetown company]
were Off Broadway. Off Broadway we all shared one dressing room--the
men and the women. We had a sheet draped between us.
You
must have overheard some interesting conversations?
I heard some things that I never expected to hear young ladies say.
It was very, very educational.
Any
stories you want to share?
No. I wouldn't even share them with my wife.
Did
you have an affection for rabbits before you sang "Don't
Be the Bunny"?
Well, I have eaten rabbit--but not since I've been in this show.
Where
are you from?
I'm a hillbilly. I'm from east Tennessee. Knoxville. The foothills
of the Smokies.
How
did you make the way from there to here?
By bare foot. Actually, I'd been in the army for a year, in Korea.
I was working on a master's degree in finance at the University
of Tennessee. I gave myself a couple of years to try acting. I was
lucky and got involved in stuff pretty quickly.
What
do you think is the secret to a long and healthy career in the theatre?
Luck and perseverance. You have to have a kind of a competitive
spirit. It's something that you have to keep.
Who
are your favorite playwrights?
Well, Shakespeare. And I guess Arthur Miller, among my contemporaries.
Any
plays you wish you'd done but haven't yet?
I've never done O'Neill. I've read all of O'Neill's stuff and come
close to doing the play that I think I should have played by now--Long
Day's Journey--but never have.
What's
the tackiest thing you own?
My unconquerable soul. [laughs] The tackiest thing I own...would
probably be my general wardrobe. Practically every piece of clothing
I have on and practically every piece of clothing that I own is
from a show.
Do
you have any phobias?
Yes, and I'd rather not talk about them because they're too frightening.
I'm slightly claustrophobic. I think that's brought on by this "enormous"
dressing room.
Who
are your theatre idols?
Alfred Drake. Howard da Silva. Jason Robards. George C. Scott. I've
also shared dressing rooms with some of those guys.
If
you weren't an actor, what would you be?
Probably I'd be in mortgage loans, trusts or real estate. I'd probably
be in jail by now for having done some kind of arbitrage deal.
What
do you enjoy reading?
I read plays more than I read anything else. I like mystery novels.
Graham Greene.
What's
your greatest indulgence?
I'm certainly not going to answer that.
If
you could see one more play, what would it be?
My last play? Oh, my God! I think the last play I'd like to see,
or certainly the last play I'd like to be in, is King Lear.
It
isn't theatre if...
If you don't love it.
COPYRIGHT 2002
Theatre Communications Group
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group
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