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" When I wanted to audition for a dinner-theater junior troupe in my hometown, I needed to have a piece of musical theater music to sing. I wasn't sure what I wanted to use. My mom and dad suggested that I sing 'Edelweiss' because I knew it from the music box. "

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" Not to get too sort of mystical, but I believe in fate. I believe when roles are presented to me in my life they're for a very specific reason, something for me to learn. "

Audra McDonald

Life

Learn

" The authentic Gullah dialect is actually very clipped, and so it would sound almost Jamaican and be very odd to an American audience's ears. It's not the typical Southern dialect that we're used to. It has a much more percussive rhythm to it. "

Audra McDonald

Rhythm

Sound

" One thing that is constantly on my iPod is India Arie - I like her a lot; I listen to her a lot. I think she is just a spectacular artist. "

" I grew up in a nonprofit theater company in the heartland of central California, so I am very aware of the importance that company had not only on my life but my community. "

" I auditioned for Julliard because I wanted to live in New York, and I wanted to be on Broadway at the time. Julliard seemed like right way to get there. "

" I admire but don't envy people who have children and also have big, wonderful perfect houses. Maybe Martha Stewart could do it; to me those two things aren't compatible, but I know our children will grow up with a feeling that home is a place of comfort. "

" Anytime I get the chance to sing or work with Michael John, it is such an incredibly fertile and incredibly creative and safe and encouraging environment - and challenging, too, because he is so collaborative! "

Audra McDonald

Creative

Environment

" I came from a really musical family. I studied classical piano because my grandparents were piano teachers, but started doing musical theater at age nine in Fresno, California, and went to a performing arts high school. That was my life. "

" When you become a parent, it blows you open in ways that you never thought possible in terms of a level of love that I know I never thought I could possibly have. "

" I feel a connection to many songs that I won't sing because I don't think they are right for me! There is something in my gut that immediately responds. There's no science to it. "

Audra McDonald

Science

Think

" I loved my time doing 'Private Practice' in Los Angeles, and I was quite challenged and excited to learn about the art of television, but I missed being on the stage. "

" When I first was exposed to 'Porgy and Bess' many, many years ago, I was blown away by it - loved the music, overwhelmed by the production at the Met that I saw, and thought I want to play Bess someday. But I also knew they were stereotypes that were considered racist. "

" I used to practice Tony speeches in my bathroom with my hairbrush. "

" All you can do is do good work, and do the good work for the sake of doing the good work and your evolution as an artist. That's what's most important to me. "

Audra McDonald

Good Work

You

" The arts are so important not only to society but to ourselves as human beings. It keeps in touch with our own humanity. So access to the arts in any way, shape, or form is vital. "

" I never in a million years thought that my life would unfold the way it has. "

" 'Go Back Home' encompasses not only actual geographic location but also, for me, back home in the worlds of music and theatre, and back home in terms of making albums again. There are lots of meanings to that. "

" My voice isn't an instrument I can just hang up on a hook. "

Audra McDonald

Just

I Can

" I find that I'm just drawn to anything that's going to challenge me as an actress. So, anything that's going to help me grow. "

" I choose things that challenge me. I was afraid of the camera - that's why I chose to do 'Private Practice.' It's not like I left the theater. "

Audra McDonald

Practice

Camera

" I love talking with elderly people. "

" I am always so excited to get to know a new audience. My concerts are very personal experiences. "

" I've spent my whole career trying to stay out of any box that anyone could put me in. 'I'm going to do a play now.' 'Now I'll do a musical.' That was my instinct. So I don't feel boxed in. But 'African-American woman' is part of my identity. I don't want to relinquish that - especially as a mother, helping my daughter find her identity. "