The idea that all violence in movies is okay simply because it happens is bull. Directors and writers have a responsibility.

I think that both musicals and opera have a capacity to get to an inner emotional landscape.

I love directing Shakespeare on film. It's fantastic that the actors would do exactly the same thing and be true to their part.

When I was thinking about The Lion King, I said, we have to do what theater does best. What theater does best is to be abstract and not to do literal reality.

Children have an easier ability to tap into the surreal than adults do, in a funny kind of way.

I call myself a playmaker sometimes - but that's just a word. I don't feel like I have to have a title or a job description.

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