Based on Esquire's Cal Fussman interviews.

Put your ego away. A director once told me: the best ideas are what’s gonna end up on stage. That’s important.

My dad and I have a lot in common. He was a professional hockey coach. The more I work as a director, the more I see the similarities between the two fields and the two positions.

The best kind laughter is the one that should be crying.

Comparing yourself to other artists is something you should not do. I’m still learning. But it’s hard. Really hard

Flaws are useful. You should know at all times what they are. You don’t need to transform them into qualities but you need to be aware of them so that you can say ‘Hey, this doesn’t quite work’ and the next time you come around to a particular problem, you make the conscious effort to tweak it. To make a small strength out of it. It comes back to the ego thing.

Make new discoveries. Make new mistakes. Rehearsals should have that goal. I learned that from Tommy Kail.

Bacon and eggs.

Garry Oldman said ‘What other people think of me is none of my business’. People misinterpret this as not giving a shit about other people, I don’t think that it is true. It’s more about believing in something, giving it your full attention and knowing that you are doing what’s best for you. It won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but don’t let that discourage you or stop you in your tracks.

Compromising artistic integrity because of political reasons pisses me off. I am not a very political person and I don’t get involved. Maybe I should.

Entertainment is perhaps my favourite word in this business. It’s seen as such a negative word. But entertainment can be intelligent, dark, humorous, musical, thought provoking, literary, important, etc… Entertainment is what I love to do.

Admit when you are wrong. Everyone will respect you more because of it.