How to handle stage fright!

How to handle stage fright

 Hi everyone! This blogpost is just an idea that popped into my head while I was eating my afternoon snack, some cereals. Once it had gotten into my head I couldn’t get it out and different tips and stuff kept popping into my head, it was almost like someone was telling me a story or I saw a movie flashing bye. (hey mental?) jokes, so anyway these are just a few tips and tricks I’m gonna share with you on how to handle stage fright I am in no way a professional or claiming to be, I just like to perform and these are just a few tips to help you handle your stage freight.

First thing, what many people don’t get that aren’t a performer or just don’t suffer from stage fright, is how can people be afraid? How can they feel so bad about such a simple thing? First of all there is nothing simple about performing something or doing a speech  and in case you haven’t noticed today we live in an extremely judgmental society. But that is not what this is about so let’s move on.

Okay whenever you’re about to perform something,wether it’s about a speech in school or you’re in a play at the theatre.  Don’t ever and I mean never ever follow the old tip picture the crowd in their underwear that will only make you even more nervous.. and really who would like to see their crowd or classmates in underwear? And also if you’re a guy it may be slightly I don’t know what’s the world? Awkward…

So instead of doing that, try to think of the crowd/ audience as your friends, your best closest friends that like to watch what you are doing. I know this is hard to do, but after trying it a few times you may find that it actually helps. Also try not to see the stage as some big enemy that you are being dragged onto and forced to do some tests where you will horribly fail in front of everyone, instead see it as your tool. Use the stage as much as you can, and feel comfortable on it, and don’t fuss too much about the spotlights, yes you light up, yes you get warm from them, but they’re just your friends, just like the sun that would shine at you if you were in Hawaii, so remember that they are nice lights and try to have fun on stage.  

Take a few deep breaths before you go on and you will be fine.

If you’re really really nervous like you want to run to the bathroom and pee about one million times, stick your face in the sink under cold water and almost throw up, which I used to do and still tend to do sometimes. Talk to your partners, you’re there to help and support each other, and if it’s a play it’s everyone’s responsibility to make sure that it turns out good. If you are nervous about the part you have in the play and don’t feel comfortable at all, talk to the others or the teacher, they’ll listen to you and will probably give you good tips and help you come up with solutions, in some cases they may even change roles with you, you’re all in it together, so if the boat rocks it’s not YOUR fault it’s everyone’s.

 The same thing applies to schoolwork if you’re nervous talk to your teacher, tell her or him that you are and ask if you can solve it somehow, ask about doing your presentation in a smaller group on about four to six students. Then you won’t have dozen of eyes staring at you and it will feel better. If you are nervous about a presentation cause your teacher prefer that you know it all without having a paper with it written down, bring it anyway and tell your teacher you just have it there as a support and also try not to focus your gaze on someone for too long, shift it around or focus on any other object that is not a HUMAN.  Just take everything one small step at a time and remember to try to have FUN and eventually you will get less and less nervous.

I hope you got some good tips from this blogpost, if you didn’t I hope you enjoyed it anyway.