Quotes By Harvey Fierstein

Art has the power to transform, to illuminate, to educate, inspire and motivate.

My play Safe Sex was picked apart because critics thought it was untrue. It was a play in which no one had AIDS, but the characters talked about how it was going to change their lives.

In London they don't like you if you're still alive.

Political movements always belong to the young.

As soon as I started writing, other writers stopped wanting me acting in their shows - maybe they thought I was going to rewrite them.

You really, really, really have to love what you are going to do in theater because it is an unmerciful life. It's six days a week. It's eight performances a week. And that's doing the exact same thing over and over and over again.

There are times when I don't take roles because I don't want to be perceived a certain way.

Theater has to resonate in your heart in a way that movies don't.

How time files when you's doin' all the talking.

If you deny yourself commitment, what can you do with your life?

I burned out on AIDS and did no AIDS work for a couple of years. I was so angry that people were still getting this disease that nobody can give you - you have to go out and get it!

Well, I always looked at Mulan as a movie about a lesbian coming out.

I don't believe in the afterlife, so I do think when somebody passes, it's worthy of note.

I'm sure there's going to be some material from This Is Not Going To Be Pretty. I usually use that song to just introduce myself to the audience, although the patter in between the song is always different.

I do believe we're all connected. I do believe in positive energy. I do believe in the power of prayer. I do believe in putting good out into the world. And I believe in taking care of each other.

My father was brought up in an orphanage in the Catskills. He was a factory worker. And because his family wasn't there for him, family was everything. We could disagree inside the house, but outside the house it was us against the world. So when I became a drag actor, he looked sideways but said okay.

Also, if you want to reach people, theatre is not always the best way to do it.

Pork was in 1971, and I stopped hanging out at The Factory by like 1973.

You may feel powerless as a child, but the world will one day be yours. And you're responsible for it. So, seize the day and take charge of it.

Always admit when you're wrong. You'll save thousands in therapy... and a few friendships too.

It would be nice to redefine ourselves - at the moment we are drowning in diversity. That's not a bad thing, its just going to take a while before we refocus.