When I Was 16, Nobody Else Talked

For Me To Want To Be An Actor Was An Improbable Idea. I Wasn't Beautiful Or Pretty In Any Conventional Way. I Wasn't An Ingenue At 22. But I Was Always Certain Of It And Certain Of Its Power. I Felt The Power When I Went To The Theater At 9, 10, 12 And 14.

When I Was 16, Nobody Else Talked Like Me. Nobody Else Sounded Like Me.

I Think People Have Always Liked In Me The Combination Of Being The Underdog Because I'm A Tiny Woman But I Have Enormous Authority In Myself.

I Can't Be A Man. But I Can Embrace The Head Of A Man, The Intelligence Of A Man, The Spirit Of A Man.

For A While, I Thought, Maybe I Should Direct, Until I Got To New York And Saw The Stupidity Of That Idea. If It's Hard To Get Into Acting, What Is It Like For A Woman To Become A Director?