Being Prepared to Shine
Want to be an actress, performer or movie star? Inspiring story of a woman’s discovery that her craving to be an actress was a secret longing for her “real me” to be seen, heard and witnessed. This article written by Maria describes how she discovered how to be a star in her own life.
Ever since I can remember there were two things I thought I wanted to be: a princess and a movie star. I’ve also had a lifelong interest in the healing arts (around age 10 when I first started dabbling), and, originally from my studying days, a particular interest in archetypes.
Taking part in the Ritual Theatre Group (RTG), and other workshops run by Claire Schrader, allowed me to explore these secret dreams/yearnings/callings in a safe and holistic way with themes that made sense to me.
POWERFUL SHIFTS
Sometimes a session could be quite intense and then the immediate changes gentle, sometimes the session was light and the changes more dramatic. Always there was a shift at the time. However it’s well over a year on from my taking part in Claire’s workshops (which I did over twelve months or more) and I am still experiencing powerful shifts creatively, professionally, personally & even geographically!
The yearning to become an actress particularly plagued me, and was one of my main motivations for doing the RTG, which took place over nine months and was the first workshop of Claire’s that I participated in. I had been for a long time like a broken record. This “but I want to be an actress” mantra became a major stumbling block, preventing me from moving forward with all areas of my life – not least creativity, and with that the activity many of us call work. Determination finally kicked in, after years of procrastination, frustration and regret. Either I would become an actress or I would discover what was on the other side of this yearning.
ACTING MY SOCKS OFF
In the workshops I got the chance to (as Claire said on the phone when I first made contact) act [my] socks off in an environment with boundaries. I got in touch with my inner diva in a way that was safe. At the same time through acting classes and auditions I explored the possibility of acting as a profession. Here was the deal I gave myself: to get the dream (which already years ago had become a demon) out of my system once and for all, whatever the outcome. At long last I got the answer. Forget about the fancy lights and the false trail to stardom. I can, if I really dare to (think of Dorothy singing in her red sparkly slippers), be the star of my very own film, title: my life. Not only that, I can be the director and producer too.
KNOWING WHAT I WANT TO DO WITH MY LIFE
After years of languishing in a counterproductive “I don’t know what to do with my life” mode (because I was stuck on wanting to be an actress but until then hadn’t the courage to do anything about it), I now know what I want to do and I’m well on my way to doing it… Acting is still part of it, although only a part – and, for the time being, it’s more acting as if whilst harnessing the manifesting power of taking actions, than acting per se. I’ve become a bit more humble. Also it dawned on me that acting is not always safe.
LONGING FOR THE REAL ME TO BE SEEN
As someone who journeyed with me on the RTG commented to me when I told her of my revelation that it’d finally become apparent to me that acting was an old, out-dated dream said to me: “I think you made a lucky escape”. The desire to become an actress was just a smoke screen. Behind it lay the yearning of my inner performer. That despite at times paradoxically wanting to hide, in my very own life I wanted, needed, longed for the real me to be seen, for my truth to be witnessed, heard, understood, appreciated, valued. This is me, this is who I am, the dark and the light, and both are just perfect in their imperfection.
In one audition I attended the drama coach said that the trouble with actors is that they don”t want to act. Through exploring my inner performer I discovered that my inner princess no longer wished to be a princess (she’s a bit spoilt….). After all that, she found it a rather boring prospect. Cut, cut…. New script. What if this princess was not a princess at all? What if she was in fact a goddess in charge of her own destiny? Hell, isn’t that a lot more interesting than hanging about in an ivory tower longing for prince charming to rescue me on his white charger?! (Incidentally, whilst I was waiting, they never did show up.)
Which brings me to what was, for me, really underlying both of those archetypes, the princess and the diva. Sexuality. Through exploring these old, secret yearnings I discovered that they were really disguising an even bigger truth for me: blocked sexual energy. What I really wanted was to be surrounded by people who love me, preferably unconditionally, and to find safe ways to fully explore and enjoy my sexuality and sensuality. (Wouldn’t you?!…)
THE WORK I WAS BORN TO DO
As soon as the journey with the RTG ended (in this case an extensive exploration of the theatre of the inner self with three incredible women – five, including Claire and myself!), another began – and, in a way, that is the real journey (as Claire so wisely reminded us all as we left on the last day after our last picnic in the park as that group). Through the process of finally identifying and then attracting into my life those very things I most longed for, I began to discover my greatest gifts and real life purpose, or, if you will, the work I was born to do – which for many years I had also yearned to identify and begin.
There has been, and continues to be, many challenges along the way. But this is small payment for the price of being truly alive.
Post script. On some level I believe we are all silently yearning to be swept away by our secret passions to a life we know is truly worth living. A life filled with excitement, adventure, fulfillment, and all we could wish for. A life that reflects our higher purpose and gives meaning to all that we do. Whatever point you are at in this life, get out your red sparkly slippers, take centre stage, and, if you dare, prepare to shine.
MARIA
