Tips for reducing stage fright before a performance, and a hypnosis assist for actors
review by Ask a Healer
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Tip for reducing stage fright:
I got this tip when I was studying with Lisa Dalton in Los Angeles. I think she got it from Michael Chekhov teachings but not sure about that... Anyway, it works for me. To reduce stage fright before an audition or an actual stage performance, energetically connect with the room and the camera or audience. Make friends with the creative space where you stand.
The way I do this before an audition is to project my energy into the audition room before I walk in. How do you do that? Just intend it. Send your energy into the room and begin to connect with the room. Note this is different that pushing my energy toward the casting director and other folks inside. That is a repellent force called "trying too hard" and I don't believe it ever gets you cast; that sort of energy will make them uncomfortable about you the instant you walk in.
Instead of pushing or shoving your energy forward into a casting call room, this tip involves a decision to introduce yourself and fill the space you came to fill; the space the casting director wants you to fill authentically. Those who are casting any role are praying for someone to fill the space and not just say the lines with some kind of acting skill. There are lots of people who can do a credible line reading but they want someone who embodies the writer's words and brings the character to life. If the actor can't even walk into the room and command presence, how will they fill the role?
Creating Energetic Support in the Audition Space:
When I walk in, I focus on connecting with the space. I touch the door mentally saying hello and thank you for supporting me. I project a beam of light from my heartspace into the camera and beyond it, to whoever will be watching the taped audition later. I connect with the folks in L.A. or New York or wherever the producers / directors / writers will be watching me.
The reason I project from the heart-space, and I literally envision a beam of light coming from there and going into the camera and beyond it, is that the heart-space is who we are, stripped of any ego attachment to wanting to get hired. Then, I look at the camera and smile at it and connect energetically. I look at the lights, the tables and chairs, the walls. Finally, I take in the people who are waiting to support me and I silently thank them.
If it's a stage performance, I quell stage fright by walking onto the empty stage before the show opens and taking my curtain call then. I look out and see all the supportive faces, people who have just enjoyed my performance. If possible, I do this with the curtain open and visually just lightly "zap" each audience member chair. I leave my imprint there.
Being a little nervous before an important audition is normal. Energy is one thing but true stage fright (fear of auditioning that is strong enough to cause us to forget our lines or not deliver a good performance) tends to take over when we are focused on ourselves too much and/or on everything that could possibly go wrong. By energetically connecting with our environment, we not only shift attention away from ourselves - we literally give an energetic boost to the air around us that supports us.
