How do great performers seem to “become” their characters? Knowing your notes and your lines goes a long way, but what else is there? New York singing teacher and performer Danya K. muses on the lessons and experiences that have helped her get better stage presence and push her performances to the next level…
Imagine your heart pounding at 150 beats a minute. Each thump against your ribcage is a pulsating reminder of the adrenalin surging through your veins. Each accelerating heartbeat strikes your eardrum like a thrashing timpani in an orchestra. Your heart is a small, but feisty, animal desperately trying to free itself from the confines of your chest cavity.
You see only darkness. When it’s over, you don’t remember what happened. What had happened was that I had become the girl who was singing. I was no longer myself, but instead a character completely captivated within the lyrics of her own thoughts.
One of the most important ideas that a budding performer must be guided toward (note: this cannot be taught!) is honesty. This concept was introduced to me by a challenge at an opera rehearsal. Our director instructed us to “Wait for the bus.”
Once the oddness of this request set in, we stood in a line on the stage. Many people checked their watches, yawned, looked on down the imaginary street to see if this bus was indeed on its way. Some sat down, others chatted. And some stood, staring off into space. The moral here? An audience does not want to see an actor on stage, it wants to see real life, on stage.
*****
I fell to the floor of the courtroom in a desperate plea for help. I could feel my gut twisting and turning in remorse for what was happening, for the fight I was fighting. My hands reached for the ceiling as I fell to my knees. As John pushed his hand toward me I yelled out in indignation as a different persona invaded my thoughts. Around me people milled and gossiped while boisterous music filled the air. I froze, my head buried in Abigail’s bosom. Silence. Loud applause.
The role of Mary Warren in Robert Ward’s opera, “The Crucible”, was challenging at first. Aware of the many critical eyes of my fellow singers, it was difficult for me to become the character. What if they thought I was crazy? What if I was a little too good?
The second step in becoming a performer is to become focused. Often when I sing, my mind will race. Instead of thinking my character’s thoughts, I ponder, “Did I sing that correctly? Why is she looking at me funny? Does this shirt make me look fat?” And of course there’s the perpetual “Crap! If I’m thinking these thoughts then I’m not in the moment…” It goes on and on. To learn how to focus is to learn how to live, how to breathe, and how to experience. To let go of extraneous thoughts is probably the hardest thing a performer must learn to do.
*****
This time there was no darkness, only a blinding light. My high heels clicked across the hardwood stage as my shaking hand reached for the microphone. I could feel my breath on the microphone head as whispered soundwaves escaped my freshly-glossed lips and amplified into the ears of thousands. The song intensified. I leaned away from the microphone, afraid to burst the speakers. I closed my eyes and let out a sound that encompassed the room. The words touched a thousand hearts. As the song reached its end, I stepped back to be with my friends who loyally sang alongside me. As the crowd erupted, I was a rock star and I felt on top of the world.
*****
The person I am now isn’t a performer. She’s a scholar, a writer, a teacher. But tomorrow I get to be an obsessive housekeeper and the day after that I’m a folk singer who’s lost her lover. Maybe in a couple of years I’ll be a young girl who has the misfortune of falling in love with a beast or a dying orphan in the French gutter. Maybe in ten years I’ll be an ailing Bohemian. In twenty years I’ll be an inspiration to others.
What will you be?
Danya K. teaches voice lessons in New York, NY. She specializes in classical voice and musical theater. She is currently working on her Doctorate in Musical Arts at CUNY’s Graduate Center. Danya has been teaching for 8 years and she joined the TakeLessons Team in June 2013. Learn more about Danya or search for a teacher near you!
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Photo by C.Links Photography
Megan L.