Life is Staged Quotes

“The thing I love about Edna, compared to Cello’s Prom Date or Little Shop’s Mrs. Luce, is that she is such a wonderful, well-rounded (pun not intended) character. I felt that Mrs. Luce and the Prom Date were one note characters, whether they were played by a man or a woman - but were definitely played for laughs by throwing me in a wig and dress, that playing Edna was a breath of fresh hairspray…I mean air. She was actually developed into a human being; she loves her husband and her daughter, she has her fears about how the world would view her and her daughter for being overweight, disappointment that her hopes and dreams didn’t come true (explaining why she is strict with Tracy), and the pride she feels when Tracy becomes successful.”
― Michael J. Mantsourani, Life is Staged: A Memoir on Finding Myself in High School Theater

“I realize now that worrying about what others think of me doesn’t matter and shouldn’t have been so concerned about others' opinions. I am now at the point in my life, where if you are black, white, gay, straight, or somewhere in between, I don’t care…unless you are a fucking asshole and then go fuck yourself.”
― Michael J. Mantsourani, Life is Staged: A Memoir on Finding Myself in High School Theater

“We had to put on masks and play pretend 24/7, thus making me feel as though I was on the stage long before I was on an actual stage. We were the living embodiment of the Shakespeare quote 'The world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players' and not in a good way.”
― Michael J. Mantsourani, Life is Staged: A Memoir on Finding Myself in High School Theater

“For those of you who may not be familiar with the concept of a genderbread person, let me explain. A main part of this is that romantic attraction and sexual attraction are two separate things. You can be romantically attracted to one group of people and sexually attracted to the same group, plus one or two more. For me, I realized that I am more straight in terms of romance, as I always find myself romantically attracted to women. But, in terms of sexual attraction, I am more pansexual.”
― Michael J. Mantsourani, Life is Staged: A Memoir on Finding Myself in High School Theater

“Like every reflection one might have when looking back on their high school years, they will see the things that they miss and the things that they wish they could go back and change. But, at the end of the day, I am thankful for the moments (the good, the bad, and even the ugly) that occurred during this time and the people I had known. All of these have made their contributions to the man I am today and that is all I can ask for. Though I am a nostalgic person, or else I wouldn’t have written this memoir, I take those experiences and use them to look ahead to the future.”
― Michael J. Mantsourani, Life is Staged: A Memoir on Finding Myself in High School Theater

“I still miss those days of putting on an actual costume to sing, dance, and be someone else. I have thought about going back and doing theater, or even starting a drama club at whatever school I end up at long term. I occasionally look up approaching auditions while I toy with those thoughts.”
― Michael J. Mantsourani, Life is Staged: A Memoir on Finding Myself in High School Theater

“With the Fame movie, the original, not the remake (for the love of God, not the remake from 2009), I enjoyed it immensely and it made me want to go to the New York high school that the movie was based on.”
― Michael J. Mantsourani, Life is Staged: A Memoir on Finding Myself in High School Theater