Stage Fright: A Detriment or an Advantage?

I have been performing since I was a little girl. Whether it was dancing or gymnastics in front of other five-year old children, playing the clarinet in a Southern California soloist competition, playing the piano or organ for a church congregation or singing in aria in a crowded Abravanel Hall, I have had to work through the same issue: stage fright. For many of us, we can master it or get used to it so that it is no longer there. For the rest of us, stage fright never leaves. It can cause us to shake, cry, sweat, blank out and even forget how to breathe. How can this be beneficial when performing?

A good friend of mine, Michael Ballam, once told me that all of us have 'butterflies in our stomachs' and, for most of us, those butterflies never go away. So it's up to us to learn how to get those 'butterflies' to fly in unison and for our good. What a concept--embrace that stage fright instead of fighting it!

So don't look at stage fright as a detriment but as an advantage. Lucky for us, we can take every emotion and throw it into our music--just like dance, art or any other instrument. That's what makes a normal piece of art a masterpiece. So act on the adrenaline and push it towards finishing your piece instead of tripping over it! Only you can bridle the butterflies so take what you have and fly!