Are You Ready To Perform?

#performing #poleperformance #aerialperformance #performinginpole

Perhaps the desire blossomed long ago, when you saw a Cirque du Soleil aerialist perform for the first time and resolved then and there that someday it would be you on that stage.

Or, maybe your friend gave you a pair of shiny red Pleasers for your birthday last weekend and you are on the lookout for an opportunity to flaunt them (and your pole skills!) in front of an audience bigger than just your cat.

Regardless of the origin of your desire to perform and how long you’ve had it, fantasizing about your first routine and actually garnering the moxie to sign up to be in a show are two different things.

“Am I really good enough to perform? Can I actually string together multiple combinations and make them look good in front of an audience? Will people even want to see what I have created?”

Unfortunately, you may never truly know whether you are ready to perform. Even after performing multiple times, I still ask myself these questions. There are, however, a few helpful questions you can ask yourself when deciding whether or not to take the plunge and strut your stuff on a stage!

The Big Questions

Ultimately, whether or not you are ready to perform comes down to two questions:

1. Are you willing to get up on a stage and move in front of people?

(They want you to succeed).

2. Are you skilled enough on your apparatus that you will be proud of your routine?

(Where you are HERE & NOW - realize we can put something fabulous together at any level).

With regard to the first question, if you are not willing to move in front of other people, it will be impossible for you to perform. Willing - not confident. Pouring your heart and soul into a routine and then putting yourself on the spot to execute under the stares of an expectant audience’s eyes makes even the most experienced of performers nervous.

The determinant of your success in performing is not how you feel going into your routine, but rather how you choose to act based on these feelings.

Know that everyone was afraid to commit to their first performance and that even the most experienced of performers still gets pre-show butterflies. Still, they choose to act in alignment with their bigger goals regardless of the internal resistance they are feeling in the moment.

Creating a routine and performing it in front of an audience is not simply a matter of putting tricks together in time with music. It is a battle with confidence, with perfectionism, and with overcoming countless other personal inhibitions. But it is precisely these challenges which allow you to grow from your performance experience. Without them, performing wouldn’t be nearly as fulfilling.

Beyond being willing to put yourself out on a stage, performing requires you to do something worthy of being seen. The skill level required to enthrall your audience will largely depend on the type of show you are performing in.

Most studio showcases are an excellent environment for first time performers because the audience is composed of fellow aerialists (who understand the difficulty of putting together and executing your first routine) and their friends and family (who literally think a split is the coolest thing ever).

Since audiences are usually supportive, your success in performing for the first time will come less from your audience’s reception of your routine and more from whether your routine is something you are personally proud to show other people.

Instead of asking whether you are skilled enough to perform, ask yourself whether you will be able to meet your own standards for success in the undertaking.

While it is important to go into your first performance optimistic and willing to push yourself, it is equally important to be realistic with the progress you can make with the time you have to prepare for your show.