And in my film Without You I’m Nothing, we used all drag queens to play the backup singers (they weren’t singing, they were miming being backup singers), and nobody even knew what the hell was going on. I had drag queen friends when I first moved to L.A. back in ‘74. I’ve always been fascinated by drag and the cross culture where black meets gay meets drag. They’re all the people who have the most intense and interesting artistic take on the world.

MS: What’s your creative process in terms of building your acts? Are you writing the pieces out word-for-word or do you take notes and just riff off them?

SB: It’s rare that I write pieces, but when I do, it becomes more of an acting job than a performing job because you’re kind of sticking to it; you have to hit the same marks every night to sell it. I think that’s what most people do—certainly people who get up and do characters, like Lily Tomlin. She’s very scripted, so her acting has to kick in night after night, and it’s very hard for me to be consistent in my shows, and do the same thing over and over and over again, which is why nights like San Francisco are so fun because you just throw everything out the window, and just kind of go for broke. But of course I can also tap into that place as an actress and deliver the goods because that’s also a fun discipline as well.

MS: This question might be banal, but … what’s the difference between on-stage and off-stage Sandra? Are you just an amped up version of yourself on stage?

SB: I think I’m an amped up version of myself [on stage]. In my day-to-day life, there’s a whole other side to me where I’m quiet, when I’m just taking things in, you know, my sort of restorative moments. Like everybody, I’m not on all the time, I don’t need constant applause or response; it’s not a Liza Minnelli moment. And I don’t mean that in a derogatory way—I love Liza, she’s a sweetheart, but some people in their life, they never get enough and they’re like bottomless pits of need, and I’m not like that.