Billy Porter is busy, pandemic or not.

Hes just appeared in a virtual play about nurses on the front lines. His series Pose is returning to production. Hes soon to appear in the Cinderella remake. Hes writing a memoir a project he calls the hardest thing hes ever done.

And starting this week, he narrates EQUAL, a new docuseries on HBO Max that traces the history of the LGBTQ movement through the Stonewall uprising in 1969.

Porter was born just a few months after Stonewall. He learned about that galvanizing moment for the modern gay rights movement as he grew up. Still. he says, there was a lot about the movements earlier history that he didnt know, and was able to learn through the docuseries.

In four episodes, the series, premiering Thursday, looks at the rise of early gay rights organizations like the Mattachine Society and Daughters of Bilitis; the 20th century transgender experience; the role of the Black community in gay rights; and then Stonewall.

Porter sat down recently to speak to The Associated Press about the project, his other work, and how hes been coping during the pandemic. (The interview has been condensed for length.)

AP: You were born just after the Stonewall uprising; do you remember when you first became aware of it?

Porter: I came out when I was 15, about 1985. The research wasnt really at our fingertips as it is now, but we found it some way. There were some older survivors who would teach us. It was always nice to know as a baby gay that there was somebody out there who was fighting for our rights. Just as I intersect with the African American community and our civil rights. The two are aligned in many ways for me. It helps remind those of us in the fight on the regular that good is possible. And the work is eternal. Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty is what Frederick Douglass says.

AP: Tell us about EQUAL.

Porter: It was really interesting for me as somebody who knows a lot about LGBTQ history... theres a lot of stuff in the four-part series I had not heard about before. So its always nice to learn something new. (Its about) everything before the Stonewall riots. I think theres a lot of information at the fingertips post-Stonewall, (but) theres not a whole lot of talk about what came before Stonewall, so its really interesting.

AP: You recently did a public service announcement during the Emmys, basically saying that Hollywood is making an effort toward more inclusive representation, but theres a lot farther to go.

Porter: That is the direct message for the entertainment industry. But in the macro, its the message for the world at large. Not just America, for the entire world. You know, its time. Its time to make a change and a change for good. And its about people rising up and making that so. So thats what youre seeing right now. And I think whats interesting about this series is that its about people taking charge of their lives and rising up and making sure that we live up to what our Constitution boasts, which is that all men are created equal.

AP: The pandemic has changed lives. How has yours changed?

Porter: Its a global reset, thats what Ive been calling it. Ive really been trying to make lemonade out of lemons. Ive leaned in to my self-care work. Ive leaned into boundaries and balance in relation to how I engage in the business and how I protect my relationships, my marriage, my family, everything. You know, I really feel like, as horrible as this is, the silver lining is that everybody is awake. And if youre not awake now and if you dont see it for what it is now, you never will. All of the issues have been laid bare.

AP: Your roots are in live theater, a world obviously in crisis now. What do you you see happening with theater?

Porter: I dont know. Weve never been here before. The show must go on has always been the motto. But the show is not going on. It is very depressing to walk through New York City and midtown. I have never seen it like this. I do believe that when its time to come back and its safe to come back, people will come back. But whos to say when its going to be safe?

AP: Do you see yourself performing live theater again?

Porter: Of course. I will always do theater. Theater is the first love, theater is the reason why Im sitting here. So I will always, always return to the theater.

AP: How about fashion. Where do you see that world going?

Porter: Fashion is art. And art always survives. Art is how civilizations heal. Thats what (late author) Toni Morrison says. Art has to reflect the time that its in. What that looks like, I dont know. You know, thats up to the artist, personal discretion and personal voice. But I know for certain that it will come back. It actually hasnt gone anywhere. Its been flourishing. I was just at Christian Sirianos show at his new house in Connecticut last week. And it was was breathtaking to see the political fashion art that has come out of this. Its a direct response, an antidote to what were living through.

AP: Youre writing a memoir. How has that process been?

Porter: Its a very difficult process. Yes, it is! Its the most difficult thing Ive ever had to do. Because Im trying to tell the truth and Im trying to help somebody. So that means digging deep, and its hard.