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Confronting the Peaks and Valleys

by Mario A. Campanaro

Confronting the Peaks and Valleys

by Mario A. Campanaro

Let’s open up about how, very often, there will be times during our journey when we confront many bumps in the road. These peaks and valleys will often challenge our relationship to acting. Why wouldn’t they? Our work uses the Self as the instrument to create the music of life for our artistry, while also serving to tell a story within the safety of givens… for the purpose of community and the awareness of all the trials and tribulations of the human condition. And that Self is a beautiful, complex, layered, sensitive, and vulnerable human instrument.

The work itself will inevitably bring up a myriad of complex obstacles, leading to a self-exploration that asks us to question why we’ve taken on this journey of being an actor/artist. The industry and business side of being an actor/artist is a whole other mountain that can trigger a variety of circumstances, often causing dissonance within our relationship to the work. These difficult times can manifest as complicated thoughts and feelings such as frustration, depression, competition, anger, resentment, self-esteem issues, and more often than not, a love/hate relationship with the work itself.

It can also trigger complex issues within the Self, creating a labyrinth of self-exploration that requires observing, understanding, and possibly healing those triggers that threaten our relationship to our work and art. Sometimes, it leads to unproductive, self-deprecating, and self-destructive thoughts, feelings, emotions, and behaviors. Whether these challenges stem from the work itself, the industry/business side, our personal history, or any other known or hidden factors, they all ask us to question what we’re doing and why.

I encourage you, when times get rough, to always return to that first moment you chose to follow the path of your artistry. Remind yourself why you made the choice to pursue it, and reconnect with that reason within your mind, body, and spirit. Reconnect to the inspiration, excitement, motivation, and calling that first drew you to this craft. And then hold that dear in your heart.