The Juilliard-trained theater actor Benjamin Walker, who played the 16th president on the silver screen in "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter" and Andrew Jackson on Broadway, has taken a break from American politics to star as the booze-swilling Brick in "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof" at the Richard Rogers Theater through March 30. At a sculptured 6-foot-3, Walker successfully embodies Brick with bourbon-soaked vulnerability and plenty of southern charm. Thirty minutes before curtain, a cool and collected Walker answered T's questions about crutches, lap dances and his almighty mother-in-law, Meryl Streep. So what's it like tackling that beast of a playwright Tennessee Williams? Well, I've got a pretty good support system around me. I've got a great cast to work with, and director Rob Ashford at the helm. It was really a delight, frankly. It is beautiful poetry, and I had classical training at Juilliard, so I felt pretty prepared. I mean, that doesn't mean it's not daunting, but we're not shooting in the dark here. Have you ever broken a bone? Because Brick's on crutches the whole time, and you're pretty good at getting around the stage. I have. I've never broken a bone in my leg, though, so I've never had to use crutches. And, particularly, I've never had to use crutches on a raked stage, so that's been challenging - and very helpful when it comes to being drunk. You feel like you're about to fall over! Speaking of, what's in the bottle you're drinking? It's some kind of tea they make up, kind of flavorless, and not so bad. What's it like working opposite Scarlett, who plays a pretty fabulous Maggie the Cat? Scarlett's the whole deal. The least interesting thing about her is that she's attractive. That's one of the things she gets the most attention for, but she's highly intelligent, she's a wonderful scene partner, and she's a wonderful lady. You're in very good shape for this. Do you have a specific workout that you do? I'm working with a guy that kind of helps me as an actor, you know? We looked up quarterbacks in the '50s and tried to recreate their bodies on my body. So we just kind of approached it as actors who need to look a certain way. If you had your druthers, would you be making movies or be on the stage? The place I feel most at home is when I have health insurance. I really don't care how I get it, whether it's on film, or television or waiting tables, you know? The world, and entertainment, and film, and television, it's all changing, and we're just lucky to be a part of it. If I keep my goals simple, like health insurance, I should have a good time. You've done a ton of theater. What's the craziest thing that's happened to you during a show? Well, one time during "Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson," there's a point where I jump off the stage and give an unsuspecting patron a lap dance. I straddled an elderly woman, and I don't know if I bumped her in the face with my crotch - I'm not really sure what happened. But somehow, I knocked her dentures out. Stop it! I'm not kidding. Her false teeth fell right out of her mouth. And it was probably because she was screaming in horror, but they landed right in my lap. I took it as a high compliment, but I'm sure it wasn't. One last question. Has your mother-in-law, Meryl Streep, given you any good advice about maintaining a longstanding career in Hollywood? No, she hasn't given me much advice, and lo and behold, she won't take much from me. I don't know what the problem is. No, she's been nothing but supportive and kind to me.