#36.) Never performing in front of others. This may not be your true calling, but trying it at least once is an important life experience.
I am not a performer. I do not act. I most definitely cannot sing. And unless the macarena and the "white shuffle" count, I cannot dance.
 |
| That's me, the Keystone Cop |
However, like many people, I have had my share of parts in school performances. In my grammar school, everyone had to be in the school Christmas show. It wasn't an option. It was just what we did in my K-8 school. This means I was in nine Christmas play performances, but I only vaguely remember three: the time I played a keystone cop and ran around chasing someone else, the year I was one of the Hiawatha story narrators, and the play Godspell (though I have no idea which part I played). What I remember most about these experiences is that I was either nervous or embarrassed. The most "at ease" of the three I recall is when I was the narrator, but I still felt the pressure and stress of having to remember all the words. I was terrified I was going to mess it all up and the other narrators would have to step in for me. I was concerned they would be upset if I messed up.
In high school, the only time I performed was for the required freshman class play. I do not remember why we had to do this, except I remember hearing that it was a tradition that all freshman classes performed for the school. Our play was Grease and I was one of the background beauty school dropout singers. I didn't want to be in that, either.
Truth be told, I was just too afraid - afraid of looking stupid, afraid of not being good enough. I never had that ability to let loose and be okay with looking silly. I didn't even dress up for Halloween or Spirit Week. Once, a couple of my friends dragged me to a theater audition at another high school. I refused to try out and just watched them do it. I remember standing there and thinking, "OMG. JUST GO DOWN THERE AND TRY IT." And I couldn't make myself do it.
I let fear control me. That was when I was 14.
Fortunately, things changed.
When I was 17, I went on a cruise with my parents. The cruise activities included a lip syncing contest. My stepfather encouraged me to do it. He was always full of compliments. He made me believe I would be awesome and could win. He truly helped increase my self-confidence...and he is one of the reasons I changed into a more self-confident person, a person who is able to face her fears. So, I "competed" in the lip synching contest...by myself, a solo performance at that!
And guess what!
I won. That's right. Me. I WON. Woot.
But I'm going to "keep it real" here. It wasn't karaoke, so no one had to actually hear me sing. It was just me pretending to sing and dancing around. There were also a lot of senior citizens and drunk people on this cruise, so a sober teenager with semi-acceptable rhythm, a bright smile, and correct lip synching skills could easily win this tiny little "competition," especially since it was based on CHEERING from the audience. I wasn't delusional. I was never going to become famous for my performance.
No matter. I won and I got a trophy. HAHA. BUT MORE IMPORTANT was that I had fun.
And guess what? That wasn't my last lip synching performance. I did a few more, on cruises and one in the dorms during college...and they were a BLAST to do. Super fun. Just a couple minutes to act silly, have fun, and let loose.
Like #36 said, it may not be a "true calling," but it's definitely something to experience at least once. I'm glad I got over my childhood fear, stepped out of my comfort zone, and performed in front of an audience.
P.S. And for the record, I dress up every Halloween now, too.
Have you ever performed in front of an audience?
No comments:
Post a Comment