Magic- It's Everywhere!

Magic. Magic is everywhere. Magic is in science! It’s in math, history, and English! It is in nature, and the buildings that surround us. It is also in music, dance, art, and theatre. It is inside the people we interact with every day. Everything, everyone, and everywhere has magic.

I used the Miriam Webster Online dictionary and decided to look up the word ‘magic’. I found lots of fun things! Here we go:

“n. -a quality that makes something seem removed from everyday life, especially in a way that gives delight.”

“adj. - wonderful; exciting.”

“v. - move, change, or create”

Magic (to me) is synonymous with energy, and the Spirit/light. *happy shiver* Magic!

So magic can be a verb, adjective, and a noun! Among other things I’m sure. It gives delight, it changes, and creates. It is something that catches your eye and seems different from everyday life.

Let’s delve into this even more, using something that I know and love VERY much. Theatre.

Theatre has this magic- also known as energy! Woo! I have been called a “theatre hippie”, or its equivalent, on multiple occasions, usually from fellow thespians. Why? Because I am a firm and solid believer in energy and the effects it has on all aspects of the theatre. When a good energy is present, it makes a difference. If there are conflicting energies or anger, you can see/feel it as an audience or cast member. The audience shares their energy and you share yours with them and with your fellow cast mates. You project your energy through the walls of the theatre. What happens when you use this energy and focus it correctly? More energy! Which means…? MORE MAGIC!

There is a certain beauty and power to knowing you have opened yourself up enough to be able to touch another person’s soul. Even if it is just the trace of a touch, you were able to touch someone. That is all I ever want from theatre! When I perform, I want to touch lives. I want just ONE person in that audience to walk away to have felt something new, something exciting, something different, or just something that makes them think. How do I do that? By using the energy I have, combined with the efforts of the cast and crew, and by using the energy the audience gives. And then we focus it. We use the energy to mold us. Live theatre is/should be different every night! We are new people every night and our audience is different every night! I am not the same person I was last night, so why would my character be the exact same every night? I've had new experiences since then that can help me communicate through this character. I've been changed. My character is being created. We are trying to move people. Tada! The definition of magic!

To use this energy, and to feel it, you have to learn to become completely vulnerable. Many people think that sounds like a scary, scary word. To me, it is a beautiful word full of potential. When we are vulnerable we are open to others. We have opened our hearts and we are willing to feel what they feel, to let them lean into you, and for you to lean into them. You are open to the love you feel around you. All you want is for the people you are around to succeed. You are FULL of this magic and are ready to use it. This is why I do theatre. I don’t have some hidden need to be someone else. I have a need to use someone else’s life and story to touch another person’s life and maybe change a part of their story.

Now, I do theatre for myself as well. Rehearsals, etc. are what I use for me and for solidifying what I can with a cast. That is when I reteach myself how to be vulnerable, and how to use this energy/magic to my advantage. This is when I create connections with fellow cast members and learn my character as completely as I can. It’s still all MAGIC!

Let’s look at something I love even more and keep with me every day of my life.

The Gospel has magic. I promise I am not being sacrilegious or blasphemous or whatever. The Gospel is magical. The magic of the Gospel is the Spirit. We touch people’s lives by communicating through and with the Spirit. We have to be open to its teachings and when we are it changes us. It causes us to move and to create. We then want to share it with those around us because of the joy and delight it brings into our lives. But, again, we have to be vulnerable. We have to be willing to open up our souls and show them how it has touched our life. We need to be loving, gentle, and compassionate. We have to think about how much we want them to succeed and how much we love them.

When we share the Gospel, or our thoughts on the Gospel, or something else we strongly believe in- all we want is to touch just ONE person’s life. If we touch one, we know we have succeeded. Just touch. Just make them think, get excited, or feel something different than they ever have before. All this sounding familiar? :D

When we see someone full of this kind of magic, we tend to only be able to describe it as light. You see someone and you just kind of think, “Wow! She/he shines! I want to be closer to them, I want to know how they get that light, they are so bright. They have so much they will accomplish.” This light is the Spirit. It is the light of Christ. We all have it inside of us. Some have learned how to foster it a bit better than others and make it a massive bonfire; others are still a small candle. Others are embers burning dimly. We ALL have it. It is what connects us and makes it possible for us to touch each other’s lives. Some of us hide our little light; some of us try to show it off. Both aren't exactly the best way to share. By hiding our light, we don’t give it the chance to truly shine and to begin to burn brightly. And then we can't share it! We need to put our little flame through a few trials so that it can become stronger! On the other end of the spectrum, you can’t try to show off your light. That sounds a bit like pride, and I don’t know if you've noticed, but most of the problems in the Bible and Book of Mormon, and pretty much all religious history began with pride. It’s like saying, “See my light!!! See it SHINE!!!!” And then you hold your candle out and away from you and stick it on a pedestal… and the wind blows it out. Or a wave comes and overtakes the candle. That’s not exactly conducive to sharing your light.

We need to learn how to foster this light, this magic, in ourselves and then begin to share it. Not by showing it off, but by gently holding it out to someone. They already have a bit of a light! You just need to find the right way to kindle and encourage that particular fire. Every fire is a little different, so each one needs to be cared for individually and you need to be able to deduce what that fire needs. And eventually, we will all shine. Our fire will be “visible”. It will be almost tangible. Just like the energy in the theatre. Magic.

So… energy in the theatre… that stuff you are trying to share with an entire audience… it’s the same as the Spirit. It is the light of Christ. It is magic! This is why I do theatre. This is why I do music. Through my love of theatre I am able to share the light of Christ! I am able to form a type of communion through myself, my cast members, and the audience. We are able to begin fanning each other’s fires and can nurture them into a slightly bigger flame!

The theatre is incredibly sacred to me. It is where I have some of my highest highs and lowest lows. But it is through and with theatre that I understand more of the Gospel and the powerful effect of the Spirit and how useful it is to envision and use energy as I act. My most beloved memories in the theatre have been when I could tell I had touched someone’s life at their core. Even if it was just for a moment, we were able to nurture each other’s flames. We helped each other see and feel magic! The most powerful and memorable moments in theatre are the ones where a true communion was formed and everyone in that room was trying to share just a little of what they had.

Well, I could go on for forever and ever and go on about how this is applicable to both comedy and drama, I could find other parallels between the arts and the Gospel, and I have a million personal examples I could share. However, this post is long enough for wee little me who struggles with words and probably has a million typos.  I hope you enjoy, and I hope it makes you think just a little about Magic the next time you go to any kind of performance, or are performing in something yourself. It's all MAGIC J