The lights shone from the ceiling, the air was cold and still. I was so nervous I couldn’t hear anything but my own breath, not even the thunderous clapping coming from the near distance. Then the audience became silent, as if they were holding their breath. I had to hold myself together, despite my thumping heart and sweaty palms. As soon as I spoke my first line, I felt another person coming to life inside of me. Nothing in this world could be more exciting than acting.
When I was in elementary school in Taiwan, one year we were all asked to be a part of the school play, “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.” I ended up with the biggest part, playing Snow White. Even though I stayed after school every day to practice, I couldn’t overcome my fear of performing in front of hundreds of people. I almost fainted on stage that day. Never will I do this again, I vowed.
But time has gone by, and my attitude towards acting has changed so much. When I am on stage, I get to be another person for an evening. That’s the greatest thing about acting; I get to live so many different lives.
“It takes ten years of hard work behind stage to present a brilliant show for ten minutes on stage.” I couldn’t agree more with this Chinese saying. Acting is about creating and inhabiting the personality and thoughts of the character. Although at times acting can be challenging and strenuous, seeing an audience get carried away is priceless.