Interview with Jayma Mays

Known from shows like "Heroes", "Ugly Betty" or "Entourage" actress Jayma Mays will be in the maincast of the musical comedy "Glee", which will first air later this year on FOX. In our interview, Jayma told us what we can expect from the show, if we will ever see her sing on the show and her relationship to co-star Jane Lynch.

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1. What is your favorite memory of your childhood?

That's a difficult question! One of my fondest memories is when my friend Missy and I got hold of my parent's video camera and made our own version of a muppet movie. It was fantastic!

2. When and why did you decide to become an actress?

I think I always knew that I wanted to be an actress, but didn't really think it was an option for me while I was growing up in such a small town in Virginia. It wasn't until my second year of college that I really realized that I needed to give it a shot. So, I switched majors, gave my parents heart attacks and then moved to California.

3. If you could choose to put together an entire crew for a movie: Who would be the director? Who would be the writer? And who would be in the leading role(s)?

Alfred Hitchcock. Jim Henson. Wall-E.

4. On "Heroes" you played the lovely character Charlie who was extremely missed when she was gone. Did you like playing her? Did they tell you that Charlie would only be in a few episodes?

I LOVED playing Charlie! She was such a mysterious character to me. I did know when I auditioned that she would only be in a few of the episodes, but I had no idea that she's suffer death-by-can-opener!

5. On "How I Met Your Mother" you played a potential mother-to-be as the coat desk girl who shared a nice evening with main character Ted Mosby. At the end of the episode Ted tells that your character is not the mother. Would you have liked it to stay unclear to maybe have the chance for another appearance?

Ah, the power of suspicion. You know, it's funny, but I was told there was a rumor floating around online that "Coat Check Girl" actually was the mother of the children. So you never know...

6. Do you watch "How I Met Your Mother" or "Heroes" or any of the other shows you starred in?

I do like to watch those shows, but I tend to catch-up with them one season box set at a time.

7. What was it about "Glee" that made you audition for a role in the show?

Within reading just the first few pages of "Glee", I knew that it would be such an amazing project to be a part of. All of the characters were so well defined, the writing was fantastic and it was so different to anything I had read before.

8. When you were in High School was there a glee club? Were you part of it? What did you think about the club and its members?

My high school didn't have a glee club, but if we had, I would have most definitely tried to join!

9. Was there been a special teacher while you were in school? What do you remember of him or her and why is he or she special for you?

I feel very fortunate to have had a lot of wonderful teachers in school. One particular teacher that I still stay in touch with, Debbie Raines, truly made me feel like I should think about acting as a possible career. If it weren't for her, I'm not sure that I would have had the confidence in college to continue with it. Maybe I'd be a mathematician or a butcher.

10. Tell us a bit about your character Emma Pillsbury. How much of yourself is in Emma?

Emma is a high school guidance counselor that suffers from a fear of germs and has a slight case of OCD. She is hopelessly infatuated with Will Schuester - the glee coach at school - but, since he's married she is forced to keep her emotions at bay. Thankfully, I am not suffering from any "Emma ailments" just yet, but I did notice that I had alphabetized my spice rack this past month ... scary.

11. How can we imagine a typical day on set?

A typical day on set consists of about five coffees, three costume changes and one musical number. It's fantastic.

12. Will we every see you perform and sing on “Glee”?

Oh, heavens, yes, and I apolgize in advance.

13. We already know Victor Garber, Kristin Chenoweth and Josh Groban will be guest stars on the show. Will there be any other you can tell us about?

Yes - we've had such amazing talent visit the show - it's just been wonderful! Along with Victor Garber, who plays the father of Will Schuester, we had Debra Monk play his mother!

14. Is there anything else you can tell us about what's coming up next?

You can definitely expect more fantastic music from the glee kids. The plots that were established in the pilot get more intense, and dare I say it, jucier. I don't think I'm allowed to give away too much!

15. Are there funny experiences you made on set that you can tell us about?

I thankfully haven't been pranked myself just yet, but I'm waiting for it. I, personally, am constantly feeling tongue-tied around Jane Lynch because I am such a big fan of hers - so that's funny to me. I've really thought about writing out things to say to her so I don't get so nervous ... that's so embarrassing.

16. Do you have any new projects you can tell us about?

Nothing I can speak of right now...

17. Since myFanbase is an online magazine about TV series, do you have a favorite one?

I'm a little late in catching up with a lot of television, but I have recently become absolutely obsessed with "30 Rock". The cast is so amazing and funny that I've been watching about three episodes a day.

Annika Leichner - myFanbase