Readying Oneself for Performance

I can't say that I know what any actor feels like, about to go on stage, petrified about live recall of rehearsed lines and an audience who is judging every tiny movement. However, this Saturday I will be on a similar display at "Paint the Town." I've had cause to think about this, since we have only a dozen artists willing to paint en plein aire in this final year of the event. After seven years, I figured all of SAGA's artists would be well used to painting in public. Many are already happy to, but so many more are not. After a discussion with one artist who has participated twice in the past and explained the sheer terror and then the massive pressure of producing something for exhibition, I realized that perhaps I'm different. I never thought of this process as "performance," but some do. And some suffer so badly from stage fright (read: fear of being judged) that they are unwilling to do the thing they love in front of others. I will miss this event, as will many Salmon Arm citizens and business owners. It's well loved and looked forward to by many, including young aspiring artists.