I have dubbed 2014 as the year of sea change. And, so far, it’s certainly living up to its name. In the second week of the new year, I joined a theatre company – the Eclectic – the company I so enjoyed working with last summer. Less than a week later, I was asked if I could replace an actor who dropped out of a show due to a family situation. The request was made on Monday – and the show opened on Friday – and there would be only two rehearsals before opening. So, I looked at the script and thought, “Wow, this is impossible,” then answered, “Sure, I’ll do it.”
Crazy, right? But my gut was saying, “yes,” and I knew that to create a real sea change, I’d need to push myself beyond my current comfort level.
Working on my lines, a monologue of about 880 words – a good page and a half of small font, single-spaced lines, I was reminded of my CalArts days. There were times when I’d look at all I was expected to accomplish and think, “Wow, this is impossible. There aren’t enough hours in the day!” Then I’d take a deep breath and just start. At the end of the day, I’d be amazed – all the scene work, rehearsals, performances, classroom presentations – whatever it was that had seemed so unreachable at the start was actually done by the end of the day.
So here I was again, at the start of 2014, being asked to stretch the boundaries, reach farther, break through beyond what seemed reasonable and do-able – and saying, “yes, I’ll do it.”
Alright, now it’s your turn. When have you reached a seemingly impossible goal? How have you surprised yourself by breaking through what seemed your limit? Leave a comment below.
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