How Theatre Impacts My Life

Theatre's Impact

How theatre impacts one's life is more deep of a question than I first anticipated. Before attending the first two weeks of class, I would not have known how to answer this question, or I would have ignorantly stated that it has not had a significant impact on my life. After reading the first five chapters and attending the classes, I now have a better understanding of how to answer the question. Theatre has impacted my life in several ways. Theatre has influenced me through personality and stage presence in front of an audience, entertainment and amusement, and raising questions concerning morals and even human existence.

Personality and stage presence in front of an audience are both very important traits to have throughout life. In elementary school, performing in drama productions was mandatory. Although terrifying, the outcome of performing in front of a large audience at such a young age was very rewarding when witnessing a standing ovation just before the curtains closed. The first play I acted in, "Robin Hood," came to mind when prompted for this assignment. To this day, "Robin Hood" is one of my favorite plays. A more voluntary example of acting at a young age is church plays or musicals. Entering a stage to witness hundreds of viewers was not the most comforting scenario to be in during my early teenage years. Whether I was cast as Moses, a Shepard or an Egyptian king, it was up to me to help the flow of the play.

All the plays and musicals I participated in allowed me to be more comfortable of a person in front of audiences. For instance, I am now a bartender performing improv and entertainment in front of my audience, guests, while serving them alcohol to forget about their problems. If I had not been involved in the plays or musicals, I would not be well versed in the ability to perform such a task. The speech class I enrolled in last semester would have given me a nervous breakdown, as well as a bad grade, had I not had previous experience of being in front of a live audience.

The ability to act comes in handy throughout life in general. From telling a small fib to being civil with a person you do not like, acting plays an important role in human interactions. Facial expressions, hand gestures, body language and verbal tone are all a disciplined practice and it is theatre that can teach one that discipline. All of these are important to acquire and maintain relationships in both your personal and business life. I often play poker and controlling my facial expressions and body language are a big part of being successful. On the other hand, being able to read the body language and facial expressions of the other players is vital to knowing what actions to take for better success.

Another way that theatre has impacted my life, and a more simple way, has been through entertainment. As simple as it sounds, theatre is