How do you cope with stagefright?

I ride the nerves. Honestly, I think the only thing that made me do it the first time I did was that someone I really liked was going to be in the audience, but I didn’t know him that well yet and would feel like a total loser if he came to see me dance, then I chickened out.

I also did it with a group. That way you can hide in the back and move forward as you become more comfortable dancing in front of a crowd.

And the last tip: screw it up. Just throw caution to the wind and do it. And if you screw it up, at least you’ll have been there and done that and the world won’t have ended. I’ve screwed up my routine in small ways (or big ones) EACH TIME. It’s because of nerves, I know, but screwing up also helps me be okay with screwing up.

I also bellydance, so this is directly related to my bellydancing which has been for small crowds. In big crowds, there are big lights and you can’t see anyone anyway. Even then, I ride the nerves. That’s, what, 5 or 6 years of public school drama programs talking.

When you perform, you know your program, but no one in the audience knows. So if you miss a step, they most likely won’t even know. In any case, dance is a highly personalized and highly improvisatory art. Maybe in ballet they can precisely define every move, but not in anything else.

So the only thing that can go wrong won’t get noticed, and other than that, nothing can go wrong. Go out and have fun! Throw youself into it. Lose yourself in it. That’s what shines out to an audience. A dance who is totally into what she does, and does it imperfectly wins out over the perfect dancer who lets no feelings show through.

Nerves? Nerves tell you it’s important. Use them (I think that’s what EP means when she says to “ride them”). Focus on what you’re going to do. Run it through your mind over and over. Focus! Imagine how it will feel and what will be good about it (for you, not the audience), and enhance that feeling. If you enjoy what you do, it will show. Break a leg!

always keep in mind that the audience wants you to succeed and do well.

Booze.

Practice. A lot of practice in front of a small, sympathetic audience helps tremendously.

When it’s a matter of speaking, you can take classes in presentation skills and get some coaching. A video of yourself speaking/presenting, both before and after some coaching and practice, can help you focus on what you need to work on (not saying “uh,” leaving your hair and glasses alone, keeping your hands still). Maybe something similar would help with an artistic performance. Then again—maybe you don’t want to know.

For me, being really, really, really well prepared is the main thing, but even then I am a wreck beforehand (and after). When the moment comes I just brazen it out. People always tell me I did well, even though I feel like I was an incoherent, stammering, babbling idiot.

There truely is only one way. Experience. I’m a perfomer and unless I’m with a group singing or acting or dancing I freak. But I told myself that I’m going to conqure that fear. So, there was a solo coming up in church and I asked to have. He gave me the part and when I performed it, I did amazing. I thought my nerves were going to get the best of me, but since I’ve started performing more they have mostly gone away.

I also did a musical theater workshop two years in a row (going on three next year). We were in groups and we had to sing part of a song, then it would be analyzed by the teachers there and ways to improve it. Well, the first year I bombed it, but the next year I was more comfortable, because I had started practicing in front of friends and family, which helped me gain confidence.

So, really the only way of conquring it is to go ahead and do it. If you mess up, you mess up. Just take it as a learning experience. It will get easier and easier.

I’ve been acting since kindergarden and now I am 16 and still performing. I still get nervous though. But I’m human and being nervous is perfectly natural, but what I can change is how much I’m nervous.

Hope this helps and isn’t too confusing.

At first I used Xanax. For plays I meditate beforehand and become my character. For musical performances I channel the nerves into energy on stage.

I stay behind the scenes. Heh.

@b: unfortunately a) I’m not old enough to drink for another 5 months, and b) I’m enough of a klutz when I’m sober to be worried about completely making a fuck up of myself when I’m drunk haha. For some reason I’ve been lucky enough thus far to seem to posses a certain amount of grace when I’m dancing that I don’t have at any other time, and would rather not see what becomes of it if I do try booze for my first performance or so

@Empress pixie: group performance is definitely the way I want to go for at least a few performances. . . .I think having that sort of community with a troupe helps to ease one into those situations. Not to mention that I’m hoping after performing a few times, I’ll have met some fellow dancers or people that go to shows, and have a few familiar faces in the crowd to look at if I ever get nervous :)

Plus, if you dance in halves (like we do), the other half of the troupe (the other level) will cheer and hoot and holler while you are dancing which makes it much more fun and less stressful.

@empresspixie: Oh yeah! That’s totally a good point. At the moment I’m only rehearsing with one other girl, but if possible I’d love to get more people on board . . .I always found group performances a lot more fun anyhow.

For me it was practice. It seems like you have had plenty of practice though. You need to figure out what you are truly afraid of while being on stage. By now it shouldn’t be screwing up because you are likely good at what you do. Is it just the fact of being on stage? Maybe people won’t like your act? Try to meditate about 15–20 minutes before you go on stage concentrating on what you need to do, not what your worried about but what you need to do in order to not be worried about this particular thing. Go through your routine, taking deep breaths just to slow down your heart beat your blood flow and therefore your mind before you go on stage. The less you think the better sometimes. :) Just my opinion. Good luck.

I used to have that problem before every performance but a friend helped me out with it. His name is Jack! Jack Daniels!!! I’m not sure it made me the best violinist, but I certainly was the happiest!!!

This is simple, I know, but remember to breath deeply.
And enjoy yourself. There’s a reason why you love belly dancing.

Actually, when I have been on stage the lights make it impossible to see anything of the audience at all, so familiar faces haven’t done much good during the performance. Afterwards is a different situation and it is great when friends come up to tell me how much they enjoyed the performance.

As critter says, meditation helps. Some folks suggest you picture the audience in their underwear but that has never done much to help me (makes me giggle). Instead, being completely ready in terms of costume and knowing my lines and moves and then finding a quiet place to sit backstage and get into the process of performing is what I like to do. Then you take a deep breath or two, put a smile on your face and go for it.

The smile is important because even if you don’t feel like smiling, the act of smiling changes your brain chemistry so you actually feel your mood improving. Then you start to get into your performance, and you have a blast. It all ends too soon.

Remember that while you know what is supposed to happen the audience does not. That means if you mess up (or think you have) keep going and don’t let the audience know anything unusual happened. Well, unless you fall off the stage (true story but too long for here). That’s sort of hard to miss, but that is why they make glow tape, so you know where the edge is in the dark. :-)

Look at people’s forehead. It feels like you’re looking them in the eye from their perspective, but all you are really seeing is that tiny patch of skin above their eyes. It is very effective in making you look confidant and also making you look like you’re connecting with the audience.
That nervous feeling in your gut is a good thing. It keeps you sharp. Just breathe and focus on what you know.

Actually don’t look at them at all. Look directly above them. That’s what I was taught in musical theatre camp (and that was taught by people on Broadway and other professionals).

be comfortable in your dance moves..be comfortable and have MAJOR CONFIDENCE…now dont confuse confidence with cockiness…Just be yourself out there and be in your own world while dancing if that helps…thats what i do…