Khandi Alexander: Why Laughter Is The Best Medicine

Khandi Alexander (Dr. Alexx Woods) recently told CBS.com why comedy provides the perfect equilibrium to her dramatic role on CSI: Miami.

"This hiatus coming up I'm looking at a comedy because I need the balance," the actress/dancer said. "I feel that the work that I have done in the comedy arena, especially in NewsRadio [...] is priceless in terms of what I learned, timing, everything that these incredibly talented performers were generous enough in teaching me. And I like comedy, I love it very much, I love laughing. We laugh a lot here in CSI: Miami in between takes, we really do. And sometimes, it doesn't always get on film, but every now and then they'll let something in."

After seeing her character get kidnapped and nearly killed this season, comedy might be a god-send for Alexander, who admitted her preparation for her role doesn't end in learning the script. "It's a crash course in med school for me, because I have science, biology, enunciating the words, you know, I have my Grey's Anatomy at home, I have a chart of the human body, and for me as an actor I have to know exactly what I'm saying, what it means. I don't wanna just spew a bunch of 20 dollar words; I have to know what they mean. So Liz Devine and John Haynes, who are our tech advisors on the show, they take me through every episode, exactly what I'm saying, exactly what it means."

Alexander, who expressed her love for theatre freely, loves her work on Miami, but one episode in specific holds a special place in her heart. "This season my favorite episode was an episode they wrote for me, called "Addiction" and it dealt with one of my peers found out to have had a drinking problem, and at the end of the episode he died. And it was a lovely episode that they wrote especially for me. I was very touched that the writers and producers wanted to give such a special episode to me."

The rest of the interview, in which Alexander talks about her dream roles and her role models, can be seen as a streaming RealMedia file at CBS.com.

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