Stage Presence Is Key To Success

What is it about some performers that engages the audience in an almost

‘trance-like’ state? The same questions can be asked of performers who leave

their audience in an almost ‘death-like’ state. The difference between the

engaging performer and the boring performer is ‘Stage Presence’. Your

‘presence’ on stage is something that is not easily obtained. Whilst it could be

said that many performers have a ‘natural’ stage presence, the rest of us have

MJ Could Stand In Front Of A Stadium Full Of People And Hold Them In The Palm Of His Hand

to work hard on developing the skills required to keep our audience awake and

attentive. You can’t beat actually doing performance, i.e. learning the craft on

the job, but here are a few tips to help you practice and develop your all-

important stage presence:

· Practice in front of a mirror: Much of your stage presence comes from

your non-verbal communication. How do you stand; what are your hands

doing; and most importantly, what is your face saying?

· Video-tape your live performances: There’s nothing more confronting

and rewarding than watching yourself ‘live’. You’ll be surprised to learn all

your little idiosyncrasies that you didn’t even know about.

· Obtain constructive feedback: Your family and friends can provide

valuable feedback that is both encouraging and constructive. The best

time to obtain this kind of feedback is at least 24hrs after the event. Enjoy

the experience before you ‘pull it apart’.

Most accomplished performers all started as rank amateurs without a clue of

how to keep their audiences from nodding off. Years of practice and performance

never really end when developing stage presence, so start your journey today so

that tomorrow your audience is coming back for more