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Committing to the Thing
Notes from a recent lesson on teaching
Last year, I wrote a piece that considered the major ways in which my teaching is influenced by the experiences that I have in stage performance. I’m not a particularly excellent performer, but it is something that I know I do well enough to be serviceable when singing, acting, and playing a few instruments. No one is paying to come to see the Me Show, but no one’s ever going to ask for their money back, either.
With the attenuation of a few of my more demanding teacher-leadership activities this year, I found myself with enough time to go out for the Faculty Musical. I’m lucky to work in a place that has an annual Faculty Musical. I’m even more fortunate that said musical is helmed by a group of people whom I have significant admiration for. I hadn’t seen them in action in this specific sphere of the world until this year. I did have enough experience of them to be confident that they weren’t going to be unpleasant (by no means a guarantee in the land of the performing arts). And the musical in question prominently featured my wedding song. So, at the very least, I figured I could turn up to auditions, belt out a few verses of a true classic in my perfectly serviceable baritone, read some sides, and happily find myself somewhere in an ensemble choral role.
