Have you ever found yourself wondering why you choose do to this every day? Do you put your all into yet another audition, rush off to do that unpaid reading, all before heading to your restaurant gig where you will stay until 1am, at which point you head home for a few hours of sleep before doing it all over again the next day? And when you wake in the morning, all you can think is, “Isn’t there something I could do with my life that would be easier?” What is it inside of each of us artists that propels us forward into the vortex that is the actor’s life?
You learn a lot when you spend most of your time with children. These tiny humans see things for the first time every day. Every experience is new and exciting. Recently, my little one taught me the answer to these questions. Dancing is instinctual. Art is a vital part of our existence.
For many babies, their love for music is clear on their first days out. It is among the only thing that soothes them. And as they grow, music continues to garner a visceral reaction from them. They love to listen to it, make it, and above all, dance to it.
And that dancing part is the most remarkable. Nobody teaches them. One day they just start doing it. Everytime my son hears any sort of music, he dances. Music literally moves him.
What would our world be without music, theater, dance? Without people willing to create it, perform it, produce it? A major part of who are would go unexplored. Our instinct to move, to sing, would be dormant.
We can’t live without these things. And so, for those of us who end up in artistic fields, it is not simply a choice but a calling that we decide to answer. Somebody has to make that music, write that play, paint that picture. That is why we are able to face the rejection, uncertainty, and hardships. Because the babies need to dance.