Emma talks to EW on what inspires her

When the Birdman star and Golden Globe nominee tackles a role, it isn’t all about going Method. “Pop culture can conjure up useful feelings,” she says. “But it’s also really good for helping you zone the hell out.” Stone, 26, tells us what was on her mind during some of her most memorable performances—including the Golden Globe-nominated film and her current run on the Great White Way.

Cabaret on Broadway, 2014–present
I’m listening to Radio Nova, which is this retro-feeling online French radio station. I don’t understand what anybody’s saying, but the music is so good that it just makes me feel perfectly misplaced. I listen to that in my dressing room, which I don’t think anyone else appreciates, but I do. I’ve been watching this rare, live performance of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” by Judy Garland on YouTube, and I play “It’s Only a Paper Moon” by Ella Fitzgerald a lot. That song just makes me think of Sally Bowles. I have a huge paper moon in my dressing room with [costar] Alan Cumming’s face in it. I also read Christopher Isherwood’s Berlin Stories before I go on each night. It’s what the play is based on, so I reread different Sally portions to re-remind me of the person I’m playing.