Fast Chat: Cynthia Nixon lets her hair down

Cynthia Nixon bared pretty much everything else on "Sex and the City," so perhaps revealing a bald head doesn't seem like that big a deal.

The actress known for her stint as Type A attorney Miranda in the HBO series and two subsequent feature films -- plays another career-focused professional in the revival of "Wit," a Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Margaret Edson, now running at the Manhattan Theatre Club at the Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, and recently extended through March 17.

Seeing the play is like stumbling into one of those great college classes with a tough but riveting professor. Nixon is that prof, Vivian Bearing, PhD, a scholar of John Donne poetry who describes with passion -- and a lot of humor -- her battle with ovarian cancer (hence the shaved head). The actress herself had breast cancer, caught early in 2006.

A Manhattan native, Nixon, 45, made headlines at age 18, performing in two Broadway plays at once -- her "Hurlyburly" character appeared in acts 1 and 3, her role in "The Real Thing" in act 2, and she ran back and forth between theaters eight times a week.

She's been running between stage and screen work ever since, and recently won a Tony award for best actress for the drama "Rabbit Hole."

Nixon lives in Manhattan with her girlfriend, their 1-year-old son and Nixon's two older children from a relationship with a former boyfriend. She recently spoke with Newsday contributor Joseph V. Amodio.

Bald . . . in February. You must be wishing they'd scheduled this play for summer.

Yes, yes. [She laughs.]

What's it been like adjusting to baldness?

It hasn't been a big deal. I'm not somebody who's really into my hair. I can't do anything with it myself. If I have to get dressed up, other people come to help with it. I was surprised that I have to shave it every day to look like someone who's undergoing chemo.

Do you wear a wig during the day?

No. Generally, when I'm out in public, I have a hat on. The funny thing is, when you're wearing a hat and have no hair, it seems to heat you up faster. So sometimes I have to take it off. I feel more and more comfortable doing that. I attract enough attention on the subway, and . . . bald . . . I really attract attention. [She chuckles.]

This play really resonates for me because my former partner went through a bout with cancer -- she did rounds of chemo much like your character.

Wow.

She's better now. But . . .

the experience really changes you.

Yes, yes . . . totally. A lot of people share stories with me. They've lost someone and want to tell about it. Or they're undergoing treatment -- I had a woman come a few nights ago, and we took a picture together with our bald heads. It's so hard nowadays to find anybody who doesn't have a first- or secondhand experience with cancer.

How has your own bout with cancer contributed to your performance?

You know, my cancer was so minor. Any cancer diagnosis is scary, but to me it wasn't that scary. My mother had been through it twice already. I underwent radiation, and I'm still on tamoxifen. I have a little scar. But I think chemo is the great dividing line. Like you said, "it changes you." Chemo is like going through the fire.

Have your kids seen the play?

My oldest has. She's 15. She was knocked out by it. Obviously, the baby's not coming, and it's not appropriate for the 9-year-old.

I hear your kids are in public school, and you're a big proponent of public education.

I like public institutions. I know they're not perfect -- but if we send our children through together, we have a vested interest in making schools as good as they can be. I went to public school -- got a great education. A couple of my teachers came this past weekend. One was by the stage door, turned to the people waiting and said, "I taught her!" [She chuckles.]

What's next after "Wit"?

I did a wonderful film with Woody Harrelson called "Rampart." About a corrupt police officer. It's out this month. Anne Heche and I play Woody's ex-wives. We're sisters, we live next door to each other, and he lives in a little room in back of my property.

Will you have a chance to relax after this?

We have a place we love in Montauk, with a big garden. We're definitely looking forward to the spring and getting back out there. We grab every opportunity to go. It's beautiful . . . to just sit and watch the water.