Before you read on, just know that the following is a TRUE STORY.
I took part in my school's spring production of the classical comedy, Tartuffe. I am not the first person you would assume would be a part of a play. I am a student-athlete at my college, and I am not always the loudest in the room. However, I have always loved to act. I don't know what it is about it really, but the concept of getting to look at the world from someone else's perspective amazes me. It also brings me an amount of joy that I never thought it would.
So, here I am, playing a part in a play at my college. It's not "the biggest" role, but I have a decent amount of lines and I'm on stage a lot. I get to wear a huge Victorian dress that makes it difficult to breathe but it is absolutely beautiful. I get to curl my hair in a funny way and use a fan to air out the excessive body sweat I accumulate while under the stage lights. And most importantly, I get to do something with one of my closest friends, my theatre "homie," and my boyfriend! So in conclusion, it's pretty a great time.
It's all REALLY great up until the night before our last show, when I get soap in my eye. Yes, you read correctly. The night before the show, I woke up to use the bathroom at night. Once I touched the soap dispenser, I was blinded. The soap dispenser must have been defective because a glob of soap shot out and went straight up into my right eye. I sat in the bathroom for hours trying to flush it out while dramatically thinking that the show was over, and I would never be able to see out of my right eye again.
In case you could not detect the drama of the situation, I was thankfully wrong. The show must go on!
Although I woke up still in some pain from my eye being severely irritated by some demon soap dispenser, the show went on. I went on stage and strangely felt better while I was acting. Since I was playing the part of someone who did not have an irritated eye, my eye felt fine. Once the lights went up, I remembered my eye was wounded, and I started to tear up. However, during the show, I didn't feel the pain.
Weird, right?
This is why I love acting. It gives you the opportunity to separate yourself from reality and see the world through different eyes. By doing this, you develop a profound sense of understanding. You understand how to cope with the trials life may throw at you. Even if my character had an irritated eye, she wouldn't be worried about it because she was betrothed to a man she did not want to marry. She didn't have time to worry about her health because it was the 16th century, where women didn't even properly breathe in their corsets. So in conclusion, Mariane did not care about being slightly blinded. I, however, was tuning into my inner pre-The Machinist Christian Bale. Just because I was in pain, didn't mean my character was. That may have not been the best example for the message I am trying to convey, but you get the gist.
I love acting and even if you don't want to be an actor, I think it is a skill that everyone should try at least once in their lives. Take a step back and see the world through someone else's eyes. Or in my case, the non-irritated eye.
