Liya Abil- Week 10- On Stage
Fear. Anxiety. Stress.
These were the emotions I felt right before my team’s performance at Dil Se, a dance production that took place in Irvington High School on January 20th.
Getting ready to perform, my team and I got into our starting position behind the thick red fabric, which separated us from the hundreds of people that had come to watch.
The curtains opened. The lights blinded my vision. I couldn’t see the audience, but I could hear them. Applause and cheers filled the room, all meant for us.
Just knowing that we had infinite support from the audience, I could feel an enormous shift in attitude and spirit. And as the music started, it hit me. I was performing at Dil Se, one of the biggest high school dance events in the Bay Area, surrounded by extremely talented dancers.
It was an exhilarating feeling. The stage had come to life through my team’s energy and I felt myself running on pure adrenaline. The nerves had drifted away. I was in my element, my happy place.
As the fear, anxiety, and stress left my body, it was replaced by new emotions: Confidence. Pride. Power.
I let go of any inhibitions holding me back from doing my best. Every move was performed with intention, from the way I moved my feet and hands to my facial expressions.
I felt control over my body as I found the perfect middle ground between strength and grace in my dance. I felt control over the audience’s reaction as they expressed awe, cheered as loud as possible, and gasped when we performed unexpected stunts.
Dancing on stage that weekend reminded me of my never ending passion for dance. I felt grounded, yet so powerful. The stage is where I truly feel like myself.
Hi Liya! I found your blog as a dancer's point of view to be very insightful. When I go to watch dance performances and shows, I do not often think about the stress and anxiety that the dancers are going through. Instead, I am often quick to make judgements and express criticism on small details. I think that remembering what the performers are going through is so important to appreciate the effort and hard work that everyone puts in. You mentioned that the audience's support helped to alleviate some of your concerns about performing. I agree with this, and I think that the applause before a performance also helps to set the stage for the performance. It causes the audience to also feel excited and prepared to watch the performance.
ReplyDeleteI found your ideas on performing to be very relatable. When I used to do dance, I was often afraid of forgetting the steps and feeling embarrassed on stage. In reality, the muscle memory caused me to enjoy the dance instead of thinking about what step to do next. I think it is interesting how you felt powerful while dancing on stage. Although the stage was originally a place of fear, you were able to transform it into something positive. I was wondering how long it took and how many performances you had to complete to feel this change. How were you able to positively view a previously stressful place?
Hey Liya, I understand your fear, anxiety. stress before getting on stage. I used to perform too, and I had to perform in front of thousands too, in fact I used to perform at Irvington highschool for their chinese new year performance. Once I got onto the stage and heard the screams all those feelings got overpowered by as you said confidence, pride and power. Once I started performing with my group, I could feel all the positive emotions flowing through my body. When I was reading your blog, I instantly connected with it, I started to remember all the fun times I had whenever I performed. Thank you for reminding me of those moments. I also was able to watch you perform, and practice. When I watched you guys performed I was amazed. I loved watching you guys practice, the way you guys moved and how the dance matched up so well with the song. When you guys hit every beat, I could feel the power you guys put into the dance.
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