BEING PREPARED
Photo – Photo Monkey (cc)
Often ‘being prepared’ is attached to knowing. Do you know your lines? Do you know your character? Do you know the play and its arc?
There is so much focus on ‘knowing’ that the true essence of being prepared is not only overlooked but misinterpreted.
Being prepared means being ready to play in the unknown.
You prep in these lines, script arc, time period, and relevance in order to advocate for your character in the unknown moments.
And what are the unknown moments?
Every entrance. Every exit. Every active verb articulated. Every time your eyes meet another’s. Every breath after a line is spoken.
Every moment.
Arts educators and students, please, support the unknown as well as the known. Reframe how you prepare yourself for a class, a role, a project. Distinguish the line between preparing in order to let go and discover in the moment and preparing in order to control the moment.