Quotes from Bill Irwin

I was a shy kid, wasn't necessarily an extrovert, but I couldn't help doing voices.

We used to have a photo of me in full clown makeup taken when my son was 5. And when he was 17 or 18, he said, 'Yeah, that thing used to scare me. I hated that photo.' So it is scary; clowning is scary to people.

We want to be able to fly. We want to be able to sear somebody with lightning from across the room. Those are primal desires, to shoot somebody with energy.

I do love the musical form, although it's often disappointing.

It's shocking to think of the universe now without Robin Williams' energy, even muted.

I used to be called a post-modern clown. But now, post-modernism is a quaint notion, too.

Being nominated is a great thrill, and we like to say that all four of us were nominated, which means that our director, Anthony Page was nominated four times.

People keep telling us, that they didn't know when they were booking tickets for it, but afterwards they say that they've had no sense that they were watching an old fashioned play.

The fact is that we like each other very much, and we of course see each other on stage all the time, but this means more time to spend together, and that's great. We couldn't be happier.

It's an exhilarating play, and you come off tired, but thrilled.

Here's my story: My mother and I were at Cirque du Soleil, looking down on Shiner doing his act. She was always tolerant of my being a clown, but I don't remember her rolling with laughter. But with Shiner, she could not sit up straight!

Edward Albee, the premier dark playwright of the American theater, would show up at rehearsal and quote his favorite lines from 'Auntie Mame'. He would stand at the back of the theater, not facing the stage, and sort of conduct the music of his play.

Acting is all about relating to the people on stage with you, even in plays that break the fourth wall. Clowning, for the most part, is the opposite. If somebody in the audience sneezes, I can count on it: I don't even have to look at Shiner; he'll have his handkerchief out. It's all about all of us in the room together.

I used to watch the 'Jackie Gleason Show' and Phil Silvers, those early TV things. And a lot of them were patterned on the silent comedies of the '20s.

The physical language of the body is so much more powerful than words.

When you're onstage, part of you wants to be off as fast as possible. And once you're offstage, everything is in anticipation of the next time you're on.

This play is truly a great invention, and we're having a great time doing it eight times a week.

From the earliest memories I have, I liked physical, funny things.

We constantly run lines together before every show too, and then there's a long, traditionally long, story to tell the audience every show. Today, we're doing it twice.

I am the oldest of three. I was in charge of making sure my brother and sister were OK and also entertained so they didn't bother my mother, who had a job at home.

Competition between men is a fuel that's useful to us. We have to be careful that it doesn't tell the same story over too many times, but it's amazing how durable that story is.

What I love is the comedy of the body. It's a little highfalutin', but you can even say pre-verbal comedy. People laugh differently at stuff that isn't brought to them via the spoken word. It's from a different place; it's a different quality of laughter.

People ask me, 'Have you done much drag?' And I say, 'I don't think of it as drag. I'm playing a woman!'