Description

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No light is as unforgiving as the spotlight, but to be in it while being a teenager is just plain brutal. This collection of fictional short stories highlight the struggles, hopes, failures, and triumphs of young aspiring singers, dancers, actors, actresses, and performers. While these characters may feel out of place during their everyday lives, they are able to find a home onstage and in rehearsals. Woven throughout the anthology are personal anecdotes from several of today's most celebrated performers of stage, screen, and television.

Whether hilarious or romantic or devastating or suspenseful, these diverse coming-of-age stories are perfect for anyone who is reaching for the stars.

About the Author

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Ted Michael is a Presidential Scholar in the Arts and graduate of Columbia University and The Juilliard School. He is the author of So You Wanna Be a Superstar: The Ultimate Audition Guide, a YALSA Popular Paperback for Young Adults, The Diamonds, and Crash Test Love. He lives in Manhattan's Upper West Side, where he is surrounded by many Playbills and even more books.

Josh Pultz is the senior agent at DGRW Talent, and his clients include stars of television, screen, and stage. He regularly appears as a guest and speaker for such venues as the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, The School for Film and Television, Actors Connection, and One on One Studios. He currently lives in Manhattan.

Praise For…

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"The short stories themselves, each of which is memorable for unique characters and situations, spotlight the importance of the arts in the growth and development—and even the survival!—of a large portion of the teenage population. Complex and focused on far more than art as a high-school extracurricular. Starry-Eyed ‘breaks a leg' in the finest sense of the word.”
—Booklist starred review

"Under the hubbub of the theater world are themes that deal with common teenage issues such as insecurity, jealousy, the fear of coming out and young love. Definitely worthy of applause."
—Kirkus Reviews

"...especially appealing to teens with a personal interest in the performance arts, and those who enjoy stories of teen romance, which are prominent in the collection."
—VOYA