BWW Blog: Micah Young - Perform At Your Own Risk

It is difficult to examine a situation with clarity. Often our passion for a project, our love for a job or our opinions about the people involved make it hard to make a clear-cut decision. There are some situations where our own well-being is at stake; it is in these situations we have to make the hard choice of staying in the situation or finding a way to remove ourselves.

These situations can vary from a role in a theatrical production, to working for an unhappy boss. The example I was given years ago was: a young woman is given the title role in Tosca. no one tells her not to take the role, and she doesn't think twice about it; it's a big opportunity. But if the role damages her voice, or she overextends herself, she could permanently damage her voice, and the production would easily move to the next voice without a second thought. We have to be aware of what roles are physically and emotionally right for us at the time in our lives.

I've also had the experience of playing for a conductor who could not be pleased. No matter what anyone in the orchestra did, no matter the adjustments, or beautiful playing, it was an impossible situation. After much stress and angst, I removed myself from that production. All for the better, as it turned out; I was not the only one.

When faced with the decision of what could potentially be a "big opportunity," and with the ever-looming fear of burning that bridge, we can ask ourselves, "am I a bad person?" Are we wrong to question the position we are in, when put up against the wall?

Each situation is unique and your own. But every situation, work or otherwise, has similar traits; you have to take care yourself, especially if you're a performer who uses their body and voice on a regular basis.

Photo Credit: Radek Grzbowksi