The Direction of Intention

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Last night I wrote this for the workbook for the class, Bring Power to Life, that I am offering in January. It is impossible for me to make an outline and then write a workbook, I have to do it in reverse: write and then organize the thoughts by creating the outline. I’m writing the first week of the class and it is already outgrown the workbook; too many thoughts spilling over the edges of my intention. Here’s a snippet:

When the actor in training stops trying to determine what the audience sees (power-from-others) and instead places his or her focus on their intention, they become powerful (power-with-others). Trying to control what an audience sees is an attempt to hide from what the audience might see.

It is paradox that most young actors, like most people, want to be seen but are afraid of what others might see if they were actually seen. It is a split intention: they want to be seen and at the same time fear being seen so they attempt to control the wrong thing. Fear will always have you believe that you have the capacity to control what others see which, in truth, is an action of masking, editing, or diminishing yourself. To control is to hide. As the young artist learns, trying to control the feelings and perceptions of others is in essence pouring their creative energy into a black hole. It is a winless game guaranteed to make them feel less safe in the world. It is a rule that holds on or off the stage.

Once they learn to control the controllable, instead of hiding, they participate. Instead of investing in power-over they place their focus in the play and begin creating power-with. They become clear and simple. They become available and present. The power comes when they learn to draw a line between what they can control and what they cannot. The power comes because they invest in relationship creation instead of relationship manipulation. They learn that they are only as powerful as the relationships they create. They are truly powerful when they are powerful-with-others. This is true on or off the stage.

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