Mike Nicholls saw me in the musical of The Full Monty and brought me in to audition for Angels in America for HBO. And that opened a lot of doors because you could go to LA and say: "Well, I'm starring opposite Al Pacino and Meryl Streep..."

I don't concentrate on if a moment is scary or not. That's not my job.

I just want to do as many different genres as I can. I think that's part of it... to not get pigeon-holed because if one of them breaks out and becomes a big hit then typically people want to keep putting you in that kind of role.

I remember seeing Extreme play with [Debra] Winger and Cinderella. Gary Cherone was wearing purple velvet overalls with no shirt and saddle oxfords.Afterward, I went home and told my mom, "I need to find saddle oxfords." And she said, "Like little girls wear?" Naturally, I couldn't find them in my size, so I went to a shoemaker and had him make me a pair. I wore them for a while, but they didn't seem as cool on me, because when your foot is size 12, they sort of look like clown shoes.

Emasculation does seem to be a theme in the roles that I choose.

I think your teenage years define your musical roots forever. You're always looking for a theme for your high school years.

Somebody can paint with a fine brush like Monet and do millions of little dots or somebody can splatter it up there like Kandinsky or Jackson Pollock and go "Yep, that's art." That's okay.