Last year people won more than one billion dollars playing poker. And casinos made twenty-seven billion just by being around those people.
I grew up without the rose-tinted look at the profession many of my friends had, but I've been very lucky playing major roles in 'An Ideal Husband', 'Arcadia' and 'The Memory of Water'.
I have often been asked why I am so fond of playing male parts. As a matter of fact, it is not male parts, but male brains that I prefer.
I sometimes find that playing the bad guy, or villains, or psychopaths tend to be much more psychologically rewarding. And you can really push it, you can push the limits, and get away with it.
I have no shortage of material or offers, it's just a case of what you select to do. But I think it's realistic that my chances of playing Romeo are now over.
I consider myself as a singer first, but something that really helped me come into my own is that there's not a separation between me singing and me playing the guitar. The two fed off the other.
I always wanted to play ice hockey back in Australia, I'm not sure why, but we didn't have any ice where I lived. It was very hot - a coastal town.
But I find with Francis Bacon, some of the things were in the place, and someone who was connected with these schools of thought, and someone who had a motivation that equals the scope of the comedy and the tragedy in the plays.
I just decided to play make believe, memorize it like it was just some kind of song and just take the emotion out of the words. And I did. I goofed a couple of times.
You have to play the cards you are dealt and if it has made it harder, it doesn't matter, you still have to get the deal done.
Mums ask me how to get their husbands off the couch as well as asking me to marry them. But kids ask me to get their mums and dads to play with them more as well.
His name, even, is part of the marketing scheme, I mean, Thelonious Sphere Monk - how can you think of a better name to fit his style of playing?
When I go to Japan and do shows I play for 1,000 to 1,500 people. I like a lot about Japan. Their popular culture and mass commercialization appeals to me.
I have always known that it comes from deep within myself. I always knew what sound I wanted, and how I wanted to play. I knew everything, it just had to be developed.
It's always very daunting to play someone who actually existed. You have to honor that, and be specific and accurate and try to make people believe that you're that guy, which is really hard.
I was always very leery of my piano playing. As a young kid, I wanted to be a jazz musician, but my taste was far greater than my ability.
There was something about being in front of audiences when I was in elementary school plays that gave me a thrill. It was like the rush you get from a roller coaster drop.
I like characters with problems. I like to understand them... To play alcoholics, fetishists, strange girls, you have to dig deep within yourself. It's 'elsewhere' that interests me.
You can never, ever worry about making mistakes or things like that. I'm going to go out and play ball, and that's what I do.
I've always looked at my career as an athlete would look at his. I won't play forever. Some don't know when to walk away, but the smart ones do.
When you are playing someone who is dealing with issues on a really personal level, if you don't bring your own issues into the equation, it's not going to feel really personal to the people watching it.
