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MOST MAGAZINE - ISSUE 75 55MOSTMAGAZINEMOST MAGAZINE - ISSUE 75Exclusive InterviewQ: HOW ARE YOU PREPARING FOR YOUR ROLE IN THE OFF-BROADWAY DRAMA WOUNDED AT THE SOHO PLAYHOUSE?A: I%u2019m constantly working on the psychology of the character. For me, I have to work both from the inside out and the outside in. Really studying the different layers and the way a human being can manipulate with different tactics is what I%u2019ve found to be most helpful. Q: WHAT WAS IT LIKE PORTRAYING LEE HARVEY OSWALD IN ASSASSINS, AND HOW DID YOU PREPARE FOR SUCH A COMPLEX CHARACTER?A: That was really interesting for me because I find that period of history, and especially that moment, extremely powerful. For that character in that musical, it%u2019s natural to assume that everybody thinks all assassins are crazy, that they%u2019re wild, that they%u2019ll just go out and shoot someone. But what I had to look at was why he did this. What was going on with him personally? Not just what was going on his life, but what actually made him do it. What made him feel this way? This is a historical figure that everyone is aware of. But I wanted the audience to see a real person struggling with the emotions he was going through. I wanted to make him real for the audience and not just have him be this %u201cidea%u201d of what this person may have been to them. Q: HOW DOES YOUR THEATER BACKGROUND INFLUENCE YOUR SCREEN ACTING, AND VICE VERSA?A: I think you have to be able to look within and find the emotions that are needed for the moment. It%u2019s about how you portray them on a stage or a smaller screen. I think the best thing to help me with the theater is knowing there%u2019s no lifeline or safety net, whereas in TV and film you can call cut and do it again. You really have to learn to trust yourself and trust your instincts, and most importantly, not to question them in the moment. There%u2019s no questioning and dialing them. You just go with what is real for you in that exact moment, which is going to be different all the time in theater. And it%u2019s going to be different on film, too. Q: WHAT DO YOU HOPE AUDIENCES TAKE AWAY FROM YOUR PERFORMANCES, BOTH ON STAGE AND SCREEN?A: I really hope they see something within themselves. I hope that I can portray it well enough and organically and naturally enough that they see a real person and can identify with things that they%u2019ve gone through. Maybe not exactly the same, but something similar. I feel my job in life is to move people emotionally. I hope that I can do that. And in doing so, I hope that I can make them think about their own lives. Q: HOW DO YOU BALANCE YOUR ACTING CAREER WITH BEING A HUSBAND AND FATHER, AND HOW DOES YOUR FAMILY INSPIRE YOUR WORK?A: Here%u2019s the thing about life and acting, they both inspire each other. I mean the more life experience, in this way being a father or being a husband, the better I%u2019m going to be as an actor. The better actor I am, the more confident I am in doing what I love to do, the better father I will be. It makes me a more patient and a more understanding father, and vice versa. I think people try to go one way or the other. But you have to do both. I need to be happy or content in my life in order to be that as an actor. They both affect each other. People want to put their life on hold just so they can act, and not do anything else. But they don%u2019t understand that if they don%u2019t live a full life with full-life experiences, their acting is going to be limited. They won%u2019t have that life experience to bring to their roles.