Kathleen Turner high on "High"

No one will ever accuse Kathleen Turner of playing it safe. From her breakout role as a sexy adulteress in the film noir throwback "Body Heat" (1981) to playing the shrewish Martha in the 2005 Broadway revival of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" Turner always gravitates toward characters who may not be the most sympathetic but are never boring.

The same applies to her latest role as Sister Jamison, a rehab nun out to cure a drug-addicted gay hustler who's suspected of murder in Matthew Lombardo's provocative drama "High," which opens April 19 at the Booth Theatre. But Turner's nun is a far cry from the virtuous sister played by Ingrid Bergman in "The Bells of St. Mary's" or novice Julie Andrews in "The Sound of Music." Sister Jamison has several demons in her past, not to mention a vocabulary that might make a stevedore blush. Turner, 56, also stars as a meddling matriarch in the big-screen comedy "The Perfect Family," premiering April 24 at the Tribeca Film Festival.

Newsday's Daniel Bubbeo recently chatted with Turner in her dressing room about the play, her movies and finding her voice with Lauren Bacall.

As someone who spent 11 years in Catholic school, I don't ever remember meeting a nun with a mouth like Sister Jamison.

Really? Matthew Lombardo and all these other people who grew up in the Catholic school system tell me they didn't find it that unusual. I wasn't part of that, but I think it is pretty shocking in many ways.

Is that shock factor one reason you were drawn to this role?

It played against the cliche, which is always attractive. The problem with playing characters who are nuns or priests or saints of any kind is that you know exactly what they are going to do. This is just not very interesting to me. She had to have some kind of outrageous quality that was against type. Otherwise, anybody could do it, I think.

Your co-star [Evan Jonigkeit] has a nude scene in this play. You've done nudity onstage before. Did you have any words of advice for him?

I think everyone has to understand it for themselves. It has so much to do with your own self-image and your own sense of self. Evan is incredibly mature for his age, both as a man and an actor. He's found his peace with it. I always wonder if it's not more difficult for a man than for a woman to do a nude scene. There are so many obvious comparisons that can be made that aren't necessarily made for a woman. I suppose they can compare breast size, but I don't think that's as intimidating.

You've made so many good films. Do you have a favorite?

I suppose "Romancing the Stone" was one I loved because we filmed it in Mexico, so I got to use my Spanish. "Serial Mom," I laughed all the time. I loved working with John Waters, who's still a good friend. And "Prizzi's Honor," with John Huston, Jack Nicholson and Anjelica Huston. How do you top that?

What was John Huston like to work with?

I worked with him near the end of his career. "Prizzi's Honor" was his second-to-last film. He just said to Jack and me, show me what you've got. I thought, this is like someone just announced "free food." So Jack and I came up with a lot of great things. It was Jack's idea to just show my hand dangling over the couch when you first see me. And it was my idea for the scene where he and I were rolling over and over in the bed, which was very hard to shoot. The cinematographer didn't love me for that.

With that wonderful husky voice of yours, I know you've often been compared to Lauren Bacall. Have you two ever met?

Oh yes, many times. I remember one time when we met at Orso's [restaurant], and I saw her and I said , "How are you?" And then she said, "How are you?" And this went on and on, and it became a game of how low can you go.

Looking at your film and stage roles, even in comedies, you never really look for easy roles. Do you gravitate toward them or do they gravitate toward you?

Both, I guess, I don't think I would be happy doing anything easy. I went with my daughter recently to see a rather pleasant play. Charming, good actors. At intermission, she said to me, "Mom, why don't you do something like this?" And I said, "Because I would slit my wrists." I liked it, I liked the people, but if I had to do that night after night, I'd kill myself.