In a way, artists are shamans, facilitators who take what's there, channel it through themselves, then put it out there for people to appreciate.

My mother was okay with me not playing it safe. She made an agreement with my father that I was going to be raised differently than my brother and sister were. My parents went through the whole sixties rebellion with my brother and sister. But I didn't feel like I had to rebel because I didn't have anyone telling me I couldn't do something. I never went into that parents-as-enemies stage.

It's people who are repressed and cannot express their fears that are dangerous.

I have directed good actors and have gone through the process which is more detailed in theater in a way. You have to get people to stay for two or three hours in a performance. They need more talk and rehearsal than in films.

I'm a firm believer in the idea that theater excels over film and TV in its ability to let people play with poetry.

Limitations force you to find the essence of what you want to say, which is one of the most important things to know for an artist.

When I was growing up, there were a lot more arts in the public schools. Politically, America has screwed up on that.