Ansh Gala | Week 13: My First Time
A stage is a magical place to be as a performer. The lights, the audience, and the thrill are what I live for. But it all started a long time ago, when I was just a wee little lad.
At the age of two, my parents put me in front of an audience of a hundred or so of my community members for a Diwali celebration event. I could not understand the song or the excitement of the people watching me. All I knew was that I wanted to smile, and I had to copy the movements of the Aunty standing in the audience. I probably did not even copy the movements right, but the limelight gave me all the satisfaction I needed.
From then on, every year I continued to perform. Whether it was a group dance full of fun Bollywood steps, or a solo performance for a competition, the spotlight always felt the same. A wonderful warm feeling that lights a fire in your heart. The cheer of the audience that compels you to continue with your act. All these factors work together to make a great experience on stage.
These memories of being on stage for each and every performance are what I enjoy about being a dancer. But they all stem from that first time. When there was no question about stage fright, and when I did not have any worries in the world. I was able to take in the enjoyment which has stuck with me since then till my last dance performance, a month ago. That memory has a special place in my heart.
Hey ansh. I honestly love how we're always on the same wave-lenght. Everytime I read your blogs, theres always so much that I can relate, as if to say your writing sparks memories in me just like this blog.
ReplyDeleteSharing the label of being a stage performer myself, I can truly understand the magical atmosphere fostered in every step, an almost surreal experience that allows me to detatch from reality and transcend into a product of artistic expression.
Performing in A Midsummer Night's Dream was this surreal experience for me. I quite literally saw the magic. I found myself deeply invested not only with the glamour of performing on a stage but the community I had become a part of. Similar to your dance community, the theater presented me an opportunity to become apart of something greater, breathe a feeling unlike no other, find a family that will live on forever, and dance to the rhythm of the stage.
These experiences that you've had, I've had, and other will have, are fundamental aspects of our life that have shaped us in ways we cannot explain. Yet, to make sense of these chapters in our life we tend to create a mental scrapbook, permanently penning down the images floating in our head. This scrapbook is something we all open time to time, visiting a place we once lived in, a fortress of solace, and an exploration of who we are.
Just like the stage we both remember we walked upon, the scrapbook we grow in our heads is what adds magic to the stage of life. The scrapbook moves as we move, smiles as we smile, laughs as we laugh, and frowns as we frown. This scrapbook is a rhythm of memories inviting us to join the greater dance, the greater act, and the greater fulfillment of life.
Hi Ansh! I really enjoyed reading about how you came to love performing, even though it is not my cup of tea. The specific details you wrote about from the first time you performed brough your writing to life and made it very engaging! It is so interesting to see how certain things, like a love for performing, are immediately liked by people from a young age. I can relate to how performing clicked for you, because for me, doing art was something I found I enjoyed from a young age, similar to how you found you enjoyed performing. Additionally, though I myself do not like performing in front of crowds, I definitely enjoy watching performances. Your blog was really fun to read, and I can’t wait to read your next one!
ReplyDeleteHey Ansh! I enjoyed reading your blog about your first time performing in font of a crowd. Similarly I was put in front of a hundred people when I was around seven years old and dancing in front of this crowd was not easy. Having so many eyes on you scared me because I knew if I made one wrong move it would ruin the whole dance. I told my parents last minute before performing that I did not want to go up on stage, but they reminded me that this dance was not to show other people that my dancing skills are good or not. This dance was to make memories with my friends. To make memories with my family and remembering this dance in the future. Just like you I started to take all the opportunities I had to dance in front of a crowd, because I knew I was only doing it for the memories and to remember this memories in the future.
ReplyDeleteHey Ansh, this blog was really insightful and fun to read. I've always wondered what performers think when they're on stage, and what makes them so passionate. I used to do tons of piano recitals, and despite how frequently I performed, I never really enjoyed it no matter how hard I tried gaslighting myself. Your blog offered a completely fresh and new perspective on performing, and I feel like I better understand what motivates dancers and actors to continue pursuing their passions by feeding off of the crowd. Being in the spotlight is something to cherish and I'm glad you look back on it so fondly.
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