I was a very driven young person.
— Rutina Wesley
I did my first Broadway play, 'The Vertical Hour,' in 2006, with Julianne Moore, who's always been one of my favorite actresses. My scene was with her, so it was nerve-racking.
I love to be a vessel through which characters can come through. And if I can move an audience with my work, then I've done my job.
Musicals are my favorite. I'm a musical theater buff.
The theatre at my school was awesome. It was a 1,400-seat auditorium, so, being in that auditorium at 17, and having, like, 1,400 people cheer for you was, like, one of the most amazing feelings that I've ever felt, energy-wise. It just felt right.
Your nerves can get the better of you, especially when it's your first film.
'True Blood' allows you to be big, so it's almost like you're on stage, and I'm comfortable with that.
Doing a play is so fulfilling. Words cannot describe how I feel when I finish doing a play.
I want to do parts that are outside of the box.
People can be really mean - they say the most vicious things.
Comic-Con is so much fun.
I always have my Beats by Dr. Dre headphones turned up high. I'll probably be deaf by age 50.
It wouldn't be 'True Blood' if somebody didn't die.
I've always loved who I loved, and it never mattered to me where they were from. That's how it should be: wherever your heart tells you to go, you go.
Dance is in my background.
At Julliard, they don't teach you where to move your face for the camera, you know?
My legs are actually my favorite feature.
I came out of the womb dancing.
Hollywood can jack you up and then help you fall, but it can also raise you up.
I'm all about the crossover. The role doesn't necessarily have to be white or Latina or black. It could be anything. But it's hard in Hollywood, because sometimes it's all about the box office. Or all about looks and things like that. It's not about the story that they have to tell.
New York is home to me.
When you're not working is when you have to stay positive and remind yourself that you're talented.
I think that as a young lady, you start off not knowing what you want to do, and then you kinda arrive at yourself by the time you're 17 or 18, hopefully. And that's what I did.
I still see myself on TV and think, 'Oh my God, I'm on a television, and there are millions of people watching,' and I get really nervous and embarrassed and insecure.
I always try to make sure that I stay connected to theater so I continue to be inspired. Not that I'm not inspired by television.
Viola Davis should be a household name. So should Angela Bassett.
I grew up with a wide range of music.
Every morning, I'm visited by hummingbirds. I think it's nice, but maybe they're planning an attack?
I worked as a singing, dancing busgirl in high school.
My body is a reflection of how grateful I am for my life and my health; there are a lot of people less fortunate than me.
Staying in Vegas would've been too easy for me.
I was born and raised in Las Vegas, and then I left there to go to the University of Evansville where I majored in theatre.
If I'm going to be honest with you, when I trained at school, I feel like I was training to be a chameleon. I want to be that versatile actor who can do anything - that's why you learn fifty different dialects, you do Shakespeare, you do commedia, you do it all so that if any job comes your way, you should be able to do it.
When I studied at Juilliard, I did a lot of pushups and became this diesel machine. I was really big and was like, 'This is not a good look for an ingenue.'
For me, I have this tough exterior and these Angela Bassett arms, and people think, 'Oh, my God, Rutina's tough.'
When I was 7, an old lady was driving too fast in my neighborhood and hit me with her car. I was running out of the house, and when I got halfway into the street, my mom saw the car and yelled for me to run back. As I turned around the car hit me, dragged me five houses down the road, and I fractured my collarbone.
Music is definitely influential on how I approach my scenes.
Fiona Shaw is one of my idols. She's phenomenatastic. I just make up a word for her - that's how much I love her.
I always tell other young actors to go to school, or at least watch movies to learn as much as you can.
I think Kristin Bauer is a goddess.
I used to love Jem and the Holograms. I think if they were doing a concert, I would stand in line to see Jem and the Holograms.
I love Charles Fuller.
It's really maddening out there for dark-skinned actresses in terms of the opportunities we get. There's just so much talent that is being overlooked.
When I got into high school, my favorite artist was definitely Janet Jackson.
I'm a sneaker head. You'll find more sneakers than heels in my closet.
If vampires and werewolves were walking around today, there would be chaos. People would be losing their minds.
I don't have an 'actor cry.'
I usually love to go bowling when I'm in Vegas. There's something about Vegas and bowling, do you know what I mean? You know what I mean. Bowling is just the thing to do.
I love 'Flashdance.' I thought it was so cool!
You know, it cuts both ways... no one wants to lose a job, but everybody wants to work.
