Who do you think was the better cook: MLK or Malcolm? And why?

I think I’d fancy dinner over at Malcolm’s. What with his Middle Eastern influences and travels abroad I bet he had a pretty eclectic taste. And I’ll try anything once.

Who would you rather have as your boss at a McDonalds: George W or John Kerry?

False.

What sex would you like to be reincarnated as?

I love being a woman but I suppose I’d like to see what life is like on the other side.

You are discussing the music of Prince with Buddha, Jesus and Mohamed. Which of them turns out to be the biggest Prince fan and why?

Buddha for sure. He likes that The Artist Once Again Known As Prince chose the kind of person he wanted to be and became it, sticking to his own beliefs and truisms in the face of criticism. Mohammed on the other hand doesn’t care for the inherent spectacle found in much of Prince's work and lifestyle, and Jesus is going through a huge Color Me Badd phase.

Why are you an actor/musician?

There was never any other option. My life has always been about music because music has always made me happiest. It all comes down to connecting with other people and finding a common ground, and there was never any other route I could’ve taken besides that of song and story. Empathy, education, bridging the gap, and Paula Abdul’s Forever Your Girl album – these are my reasons.

You wake up severely hungover in las vegas hotel room with no memory of the previous night to find yourself clutching a whip and situated in bed between a snoring clarence thomas (wearing nothing but a white leather mini skirt and fishnets) and condoleeza rice in a catwoman suit. What are the first words out of your mouth?

Hair of the dog.

You are running for president in 2008. What is your campaign slogan?

Rebecca Jones, a black Jew
Just like Jesus

What, if anything, do you have in common with Youth?

Youth struggles to find his own voice and ends up with a box full of ‘em. I relate to his being neither here nor there, finding solace in the middle ground. And his need to be understood.

If you could feel in everyday life the way you do when you're acting/making music would you still act/make music? And why?

I can’t fathom getting that same high I get from acting/making music in everyday life. Of course there are other pleasures and triumphs, but they are fleeting. The high that’s reliable comes from creating something that I love.

La Liz was fond of having her favorite chili sent from a Beverly Hills restaurant to wherever she happened to be working in the world. If you had it like that, (and who says you don't?) what transnational or transcontinental craving would you have satisfied during PS's run?

Wasabi Shrimp from Beijing! Dee-lish.

What did you like most about being in Berkeley?

I fell in love with Berkeley. Something that really stuck with me was how many gray-haired women I saw walking around, unscathed by the epidemic of obsessive anti-aging. There was a respect that was really refreshing. People were friendly, there was amazing cuisine, fresh produce, a rich and diverse history, hippie culture, lots of outlets for healing, cardamom flavored gelato, and of course the Berkeley Rep, which was a wonderful place to work everyday.

It is the future and the borough of Queens has been given over exclusively to women. Men, while not allowed to live or work there, are allowed 24 hour visitor passports as well as weekend passes - but at a very high cost. To the women: do you think you'd wanna live there? To the men: how often do you think you'd visit?

What about trannies?

Anyway, would I want to live there? Hells no. I think a mix is healthy. But you’d better believe I’d visit.

While browsing thru the Schomburg library you happen upon an undiscovered letter in which Frederick Douglas outs himself as a huge leather queen. According to the letter, he and Honest Abe spent a memorable weekend once in a cozy log cabin. Do you go public with this finding?

There’s an ethical dilemma here: isn’t it wrong to out the deceased?

Then again, I’d do it just to shake things up at the White House.

Why is it when you ask artists what they would do if they couldn't do art they usually say "teach"?

That’s hilarious. I think it’s because most of us can’t comprehend the idea of doing something out of the artistic realm. It scares us. Teaching is a way to keep feeding that need in us to create and to reach out.

Which character in Passing Strange would you like to sit next to on a long plane ride? Which would you not like to sit next to? And why.

I’d like to sit next to Mr. Franklin. He’d keep me from going crazy on a long plane ride by dazzling me with his grandiose monologues. On the other end of the grandiose spectrum, I would NOT want to sit next to Mr. Venus of Berlin because somehow I think his personality would need to occupy two seats.