Stagefright?????!!!!!!?

Question

I am 14 and love to sing, but when it comes to singing in front of people I am terrified. I did 2 talent shows and almost passed out. What can I do to over come this problem?

Answer 1

Focus on one person sitting in the back.

Answer 2

that is just like me i can't sing to people

Answer 3

what i do is look at the top of people's head instead of making eye contact... it makes it seem like im looking straight at them but im really not im looking at their heads :]

Answer 4

Know your piece back 2 front! and whatever you do don't look at the back of the room!! it looks fake and really bad but look around the room. you should know what you are scared of but that can take a few performances in different places and people. just know that in most cases - like 99%- of cases people will either feel sorry for you or they will just be absolutely amazed that you got up and had a go! just think of how much you love what you are doing and if you put your heart into it, you tend to focus on that.

Answer 5

first, join a chior, or singing group...i always feel more comfortable singing in a group...then...if you can, ask the director of the chior if there are any possibilities for a solo.....if there is, you will have the warmth and the support of the chior/group with you....then move on to singing solo....and find one spot on the back wall, that you can look at the whole time if you need to...you dont look bad doing it..its an old theater trick....but if you can, do tear your gaze away, and make eye contact with people in the audience, like your family, and friends.

Answer 6

Try to focus on the fact you love and enjoy singing. Practicing in front of friends and family definitely helps.

Answer 7

The best way to overcome a fear is to face it straight on. Practice, practice, practice.

You can start with just a few notes to family members, to being in an chorus, but built up confidence little by little.

Also, ask yourself, before you go on, why you are afraid. Everyone watching wants you to do well, nobody's hoping for you to fail.

Answer 8

1) Overly prepare.  The more you know by near-instinct what you are doing and will do next, the more relaxed you'll be.  Remember:  it's probably pretty easy to brush your teeth or spell your own name in front of a crowd --partly because you've done both countless times.  Make your performance this way.

2)  Practice your performance in the space in which you'll be performing.  When you do, pay particular attention to practicing your entrance to the stage and the beginning of what you're doing.  It's usually at these points that stagefright can lock one up.  Think of it this way:  it's pretty easy to pedal a bicycle over a speed bump if you're already going at a fair clip; it's pretty tough to start pedaling six inches in back of one.  Practice getting over that first speed bump.

3)  Also, practice the beginning of your performance everywhere else.  Make it a habit when you walk into the garage or enter your bedroom to walk right onto your mark, give a nice, natural smile,  and start the first few notes of your piece.  You'll be surprised how second nature it will become to do this on a stage.

4) Create a physical "reset" gesture/move for yourself.  Often, one of the most horrific aspects of stagefright is the sensation that you're rolling around in your own body, slogging around in quicksand, or flailing in water.  What often helps is a way to give yourself the sensation of a fresh start in the middle of all this.  (It can feel like grabbing ahold of something when you're flailing in the water.)  Try giving yourself one precise movement (e.g., clenching into a fist and then relaxing your non-mic hand in synch with a cleansing breath) or move (e.g, putting your head down for a moment and then looking up with a smile as you take a small but decisive step forward).  This can allow you to move away from the anxiousness in one clean moment.

5)  If you can, work with your accompanist beforehand and select a precise spot in the song at which you two will meet up if you get lost or freeze up.  This involves you two meeting each other's gaze for a brief second, a slight nod on your part, and then the accompanist vamping for a measure or two to lead you in to that spot.  It's a lot like being on a walk through the forest and picking one tall tree to meet up at if you're ever lost.  After you've selected this spot, practice messing up.  That is, start the piece, intentionally get lost/start singing, and meet up at your spot.

6)  Use the lights.  Most often, those on stage can barely see the audience due to the glare of the lights in their eyes.  Calm yourself by letting yourself be "alone" on stage.

7)  Conversely, some performers deal with stage fright by placing one person within their sight, and then sing to this person alone.

8)  Practice singing your piece softly on a short jog.  When your body learns to inhabit the song when out of breath, moving around, being out of a comfort environment, and trying to do two things at once, the stage part becomes more common.

8)  Most important, breathe.  Almost all anxiousness or stagefright either begins at or grows worse with shallow, rapid breathing.  It disorients you, makes you more anxious, and lets the fright snowball.  The best easy remedy for stagefright--the stagefright version of aspirin, if you will--is a nice deep breath that leads you back into normal breathing.

9)  Because of this, you should work with a voice teacher or by yourself to decide beforehand exactly where you are taking each breath in the song.  No need for a breath in a well practiced piece should surprise the vocalist.  Once you know these places, practice speaking them out loud with the lyrics to lock them in:  "I have often walked BREATH down this street before BREATH..."

10)  Finally, if none of this works and you still lock up on stage, let your first instinct be to laugh.  Not only will the audience appreciate your graciousness, but the physical release of laughing will itself relax you.

Crepe il lupo!