The Burdens of Artistic Sensitivity

The Burdens of Artistic Sensitivity

by Mario A. Campanaro

Let’s get personal… As actors and artists, it is not uncommon to have an extremely sensitive and even empathic instrument. We willingly live our lives experiencing the deepest level of the human experience. We expose our deepest selves—our souls—to the world through our work, not only because of choice but also because, deep down, there is an undeniable calling. We are messengers of what is hidden. We are speakers of what is said and unsaid. We are undoers of what is doctrinated. And we are hopefully the shifters of human consciousness toward that which is good and true.

However, there will be moments in our lives—and in our work—when this can feel like a lot. It can get heavy, burdensome, and even hurt. It can go as far as feeling like we are going to suffocate, in some energetic way, from a never-ending state of despair. In this Masterclass lecture, we open the class by discussing the trials and tribulations we are experiencing in this here and now moment. It would be impossible not to have our feelings shaped by the circumstances happening throughout our planet—socially, politically, environmentally, spiritually, artistically, and dare I say, universally.

We are all connected as key players in this story of life. As creative sensitive beings responsible for revealing all aspects of the human condition, it would be impossible not to feel deeply, within the depths of our soul, the strife that is occurring—and how that inevitably affects not only our personal lives but also our creative and artistic lives.

So, as actors, as artists, and as people who care and are invested in using our gifts, our talents, and our work to stimulate, agitate, and inspire change, how do we deal? How do we make it through? How do we continue to do our work while honoring the intention of our work? How do we stay strong enough to remain open, vulnerable, truthful, and willing to use everything that is happening to fuel the purpose of art—being instruments of light, love, influence, awareness, and change?

How does our craft support us? How does it have our back, especially in times like these, so that we can do the work with that purpose in mind? If you are an actor, an artist, or anyone alive, committed, and invested in what it means to be a key player in this story of life, how do we keep pushing forward?

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