Alan Cumming: In the Driver’s Seat

Alan Cumming multi tasks well. When he answers his cellular, he is in the streets of London in the late afternoon, walking towards the Vaudeville The­atre where he performs his new show, “I Bought a Blue Car Today.” He stops to speak to friends he bumps into along the way, “Yes, that would be lovely, let’s do that.” He also gets lost, “Where the fuck am I?” By the time we are about to end our conversation, he is in the theater, back­stage, signing an autograph: “What’s your name again? That’s so nice of you. To Karen,” and telling another stopper-by, “Sorry, I’m doing an interview, you’re going to have to come back.”

The 44-year-old Scottish actor won the Tony, Drama Desk, and Theatre World Awards for his outstanding performance in “Cabaret.” Other Broadway credits include “The Threepenny Opera” and “Design for Living.” His films Titus, X2: X-Men United, Sweet Land, The Spy Kids Trilogy, Eyes Wide Shut, and The Anniversary Party (which he wrote and directed). His London stage appearances include “Hamlet,” “Acci­dental Death of an Anarchist,” “Bent,” and “The Bacchae.” He was recently made an O.B.E. in the Queen’s Birthday Honors List. He attended the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, between 1982 and 1985.

Cumming’s one-man show, “I Bought a Blue Car Today,” is based on his experi­ences living in the United States for the past ten years. He has an album with the same name out on September 22nd. He performs on the West Coast on September 26th, and in New York City on October 25th. He appears in the film Dare, to be released in November, and in February he will essay the Green Goblin in the new Broadway show “Spiderman: Turn Off the Dark,” with music by Bono and the Edge, directed by Julie Taymor. We caught the busy actor right before his show.

Venice: How did “I Bought a Blue Car Today” come to be?

Alan Cumming: I was asked to do the American Songbook series at the Lincoln Center. I always wanted to do a show on my own, with just the songs I wanted to sing, yet I had always been scared of singing by myself. It was a combination of songs I liked, and songs people brought to me, and the whole thing came together because of my becoming a citizen of America.

How so? I read that the title comes from the naturalization test you took to become a citizen of the U.S.A.

In the test, there is a bit where the man says a sentence and you have to write it down to prove your prowess in English. My sentence was “I bought a blue car today,” which initially I thought was really sweet and child-like, but on closer examination I real­ized that it’s all about consumerism and gas guzzling which rather brilliantly encap­sulates America’s financial and energy crises in one fell swoop.

Is the one-man show as scary and magical as you envisioned it to be?

It’s not really a moment, it’s the feeling you get when you get through something, and having connected with people. The sense of achievement after I finished this show for the first time was enormous; it wasn’t just that it went well or that it was over but that I went over a major sort of mental hurdle. It’s a weird show. Nobody of my generation has done that. People don’t know quite what to expect, so when they connect to it, it’s really great. I hope when they think back to the show, that they feel good and refreshed.

You grew up in a remote part of Scot­land, closer to nature than a theater. How did acting pique your interest?

I wasn’t good at anything else. A theater company came to my school, and they did this show at our dinner hall. I thought it was so interesting; I saw them act and drive with a van from city to city, and I wanted to do that. It was the only thing I realized I had skill at. I grew up in the middle of nowhere in Scotland.

What makes a good actor?

I have no idea.

Anything an actor ought to have to excel at the craft?

Self-knowledge. You have to be sure of who you are, which is something you learn; you cannot be taught. Life happens to you, and you become who you are. Actors are reflections of real people; we just hold a mir­ror to nature. We have to know ourselves so that we can understand others.

You went on to study acting for three years.

Drama school, in a concentrated period of time, allows you to learn about the craft cer­tainly but also about who you are as a per­son. It depends on who you are and what you need. I am really glad I did. I think it’s important to have some sort of training.

Did your parents encourage your deci­sion?

Nobody was into arts. I played a lot on my own, in the forest. That’s probably where I got my first storytelling and taste for acting. It didn’t come from watching or seeing any­one. It came from playing on my own.

Isn’t acting ultimately about playing, keeping that inner playfulness alive?

Yes, like kids who laugh and play. I enjoy playing. I enjoy telling stories. I like feeling connected to others. I like touching and provoking people.

Anyone you admired growing up?

I didn’t look up to someone as a model really. I admired Stanley Baxter, great actor, from Scotland, lives in England. I really admire him and got to meet him recently. I liked the way he looked at the world. He was exciting.

Film versus theater — different yet similar?

They are very different, but at the core of it you’re doing the same job. I like the fact that I am able to do both, I enjoy both, I like going back and forward. If there were a gun at my head, I would probably choose theater. I really enjoy the connection with others. Most people become artists because they want to connect and affect people.

Is there something you do, almost like a ritual, when a film or play is completed?

I throw away the script, I either cut my hair or change the way I look, or shave off my beard.

What would you say is the main difference between actors in America and in the UK?

American actors are a little more self-con­scious, but otherwise it’s more or less the same.

You first moved to Los Angeles, before settling in New York. It must have been hard adjusting from Europe to the West Coast.

It was! L.A. is a difficult place to live in. When I first came there, it was for a film, I kept thinking I was missing the party, then I realized even­tually there was no party. [laughs] It’s not a city where you can go out and meet peo­ple. Everything is in boxes. You’re in your box which is your home, behind a gate. Then you go into another box, which is your car. Then you go into another one, which is the shopping mall. It’s one of the cities where you have to find your life in it, life will not come to you.

Alan Cumming is...

...a cheeky chappy! Has a laugh. Tries his best.

In Dare, you portray a well-known actor who directs “A Streetcar Named Desire” in a high school production. It’s a brief yet powerful performance.

I was on set for a couple days, quite early on in their filming. I know the director, and he was having trouble casting it. The role was originally for a woman. I was helping them find someone, and all of a sudden the role came to me.

Looking back at your career what do you see?

I don’t have regrets, absolutely none. Everything that has happened to you contributes to who you are, so how can you have regrets? I am still doing new things. I don’t distinguish between my life and my work. I am the person I am, and I am the artist I am.

Any advice you wish to pass on?

Be yourself. You are the most inter­esting thing about your­self, as a per­former as well as a person. If you are com­fortable with who you are, you are most interesting to others. Be the person you want to be.

Anything you would like to add?

Always wear a con­dom. ▼

“I Bought a Blue Car Today” is at the Orange County Performing Arts Center September 26th at 7:30 and 9:30pm in the Samueli Theater www. OCPAC.org For the perfor­mance at the Highline in NYC, visit www.high­lineballroom.com. For more info, check out www.alancumming.com