Sucking in Public

Dear Liam -

I have a small part in my upcoming theater class play. Onstage I tend to just freeze up, not because I’m nervous, but because I just kind of feel like I’m not being funny. Everyone tells me to just go with what I’m doing. So what are things you guys do to get over nerves? Do you even get nervous? How do you just let everything go and perform your heart out?

BTW, “Pretty Black Dress” is my favorite song. This may just be one of those really stupid problems that you are tired of hearing about but remember you brought this on yourselves! (And I’m not totally convinced this is even the actual Liam and Me band reading these things.)

Sincerely,
Butterflies

Dear Butterflies:

For the record, this is really us, baby. And we’re very happy you like Pretty Black Dress. That’s one of my enduring faves as well.

Ahh, stage fright. Unless you’re some kind of invulnerable super-performer, it will affect you at some point in your career. There’s no silver bullet to stop it, but like anything else, practice makes perfect.

In my experience, stage fright is the fear of sucking and being judged by a large group of people who happen to be staring at you. You’re nervous that you might suck, but the more nervous you get the harder you suck. It’s a vicious cycle.

So here are my tips:

Don’t suck – try to get really good at whatever you’re doing onstage. If you’re prepared, you’ll be more confident in your abilities and therefore less nervous.

Don’t give a fuck – if you flub a line or your voice cracks, you may feel like dying inside. But the audience doesn’t care. Chances are they didn’t even notice! If something bad happens, just go with it. I’ve seen great performers screw up a million times. Who gives a fuck? Not giving a fuck is liberating and will improve your presence.

Perform as often as you can – it’s impossible not to be nervous the first time. By the 5th or 6th show, you’ll feel a lot better. By the 100th time, you’ll be a bloody pro.

After playing as many shows as we have, we don’t get so nervous at a normal gig. But we do get a little freaked doing things we’re not so experienced with, especially press – videotaped interviews, TV performances, radio spots, etc. Youtube is littered with clips of us looking awkward. As we get more experienced, we’ll get better and more confident. With practice, we’ll be able to handle press like super smooth Barack Obama.

One other helpful hint. A double shot of whiskey before taking the stage tends to loosen me up. Not that we advocate that per se.

Kisses,
Jackie Treehorn