Hi, I’m a musical theatre actress in a global pandemic! What a year it’s been! It’s safe to say that it didn’t go the way most of us expected.
I for one started the year with an audition for the musical Young Frankenstein at the Bonn Opera House in Germany. I’d decided that I wanted to be on tour less and felt like this gig was in line with this goal. It would mean time away from home but no daily suitcase packing.
I didn’t get the gig but that was okay because I had all year to audition for other shows and focus on developing my coaching business… or so I thought.
How the global pandemic affected me as a musical theatre actress
In March, within five days, my working world crumbled to dust. My income went from okay to zero within the blink of an eye. (To deal with this unexpected loss, I rewrote REM’s most famous song into “Losing All My Income”. Watch the video of it here: https://www.instagram.com/tv/CAKrz_Aob4z/)
I lost so much but 2020 wasn’t all bad: I could let go of a toxic work environment, take a 10-week business course and buy a new laptop because financing was very cheap this year. And I had more time to focus on my biz than I ever could have imagined. Still, this felt like a very shitty year.
Yesterday, my friend Mary from the Mary McMurtery Voice Studio introduced me to this recapitulation exercise:
Preparation
- Find a quiet, safe, comfortable space with minimal/no distractions (if possible)
- Come as you are, as you feel most comfortable
- Bring paper (that you don’t mind destroying) and writing utensils you enjoy and find inspiring to work with
- Have tissues nearby, in case you might need them, depending on what might come up for you (could be sadness or joy–you never know!)
Execution
- do a short breathing exercise or meditation
- write down (or draw) all negative memories/struggles of 2020
- write down (or draw) all positive memories of 2020
- destroy both documents by tearing up the pieces and throwing them out to release those memories
- take time to journal about your goals (personal and career-wise) for 2021
You can be as spiritual or pragmatic as you wish in this exercise. You can do this alone or in a group. Whichever way you do it: This is your time. Adjust the exercise to your needs. (If you choose to find out more about the origins of this exercise, this article might be of interest to you: https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/old/.)
What came up for me personally was that the list of positive memories was four times longer than the list of struggles (negative memories). The former also emotionally outweighed the other. And that allowed me to let 2020 draw to a peaceful close.
I hope this exercise is of use to you. If you have any questions, let me know.
To find out how I can help you with reaching your 2021 goals, feel free to book a complimentary consult with me:
Click here to book a Complimentary Consult!
Izzie xo.