James Marsters

How territorial are you?

I don’t like to admit this but I am extremely territorial. I never really thought about that. I must have people knock on my trailer, my bedroom is my sanctum sanctorum and if anyone kisses my girl I’ll kill them (not literally). I like to pretend that I’m a peaceful man. My peaceful act has worked for the past fifteen years.

What do you think the biggest all around human fault is?

That we see patterns that are not there. One of the best things about humans is we recognize patterns, so we get things like science, music, philosophy. One of the worst things is that we see patterns that are not there so we get things like racism, homophobia and Jerry Falwell.

Does theater allow for a lot of spontaneity, or do you find yourself hampered by the blocking in that regard?

There is a freedom in structure. Structure can seem like a straightjacket at first, blocking, beats, etc., but like a dancer or gymnast, once you master that structure you become free and can really fly.

I’ve noticed many of your songs have water/ocean references in your lyrics. Is this a subconsious thing that you’re not that aware of, or is it a purposeful theme that represents something to you?

I noticed two years ago that I used the ocean as a metaphor a lot. In a weird way, I think of it as home.

If you could go back in time, what question would you most want to ask William Shakespeare?

(long silence) I don’t have any questions for Shakespeare. I think he lays it all out. He was so prolific and I think he explains himself well. I may be a bit too confident in this but I think I get the man. I think every play is saying that we as human beings all have a lot in common.

Do you ever feel that Buffy and Spike’s relationship was somewhat unfinished? Needed closure?

I think thematically it did get closure. Spike really wasn’t reformed after what happened in the bathroom - he seemed unworthy of her. By the end of the series they made him again worthy, but dead, trying for some tragic epic sweep I suppose. The problem I think, is that they didn’t want to spend much time on that - they needed the time to tell the story of the potentials so instead of doing something active I got to wear a jewel on a chain and blow up. It was the most time effective way to do it, but it lost something.

Either/Or

Paper or plastic? Plastic –it’s better for the environment surprisingly.

Professional or college football? I must say I enjoy professional - the violence factor is much higher in professional.

What would tempt you back the most, a favourite playwright or a good paycheck? Playwright — without a good playwright, it’s worse then flipping burgers.