Einstein's Dreams
By Alan Lightman

I had a teacher in college who said that an actor should be like a jazz musician—willing to jump off in any emotional direction at any given moment. He should be someone who can explore variations in rhythm and melody and pacing.

At about the same time, I read this book, and it complemented my teacher's lesson by vividly manipulating time in the same way I was being asked to experiment with emotional moments. This idea of exploring all these possibilities has become part of the foundation of how I work as an actor.