Energy

“We paid a lot more for his show,” my client said.

I simply nodded, waiting to see where this would go.

“He brought all of this AV stuff, with videos, and all kinds of stuff,” he continued.

“Sounds neat,” I replied.

“But he wasn’t as good as you,” he said. “You connected better with the kids.”

I nodded, smiling.

“And you had more energy,” he added.

There it is.

There is a certain intangible thing that good performers need to connect with their audiences.

Call it energy, stage presence, charisma, whatever – want to grab your audiences? You need to harness a certain energy.

I don’t necessarily mean you need to be high energy, jumping around the stage, and acting crazy.

But there is a presence you’ll need.

The best way I can describe it is by looking at old comic books.

At some point, many comics will have a scene with the superhero or supervillain standing up, feet spread, fists clenched as rays of, well, energy flow out of their bodies.

Their faces are usually scrunched up, as though they’re concentrating hard or exerting themselves.

Whatever it is, psychic power, lasers, seems to require a lot of effort.

I know that’s still kinda vague, so I’ll try to describe the opposite.

Nearly 20 years ago, I used to belong to a group at the Stage Hypnosis Center. They had a forum where members could interact with each other.

One older lady posted a clip from her stage show. She had ten or so people hypnotized, flopped over in a row of chairs.

“Okay,” she said, “now I’d like you all to imagine you’re on a beach. And it’s getting warmer…”

The folks in the row of chairs began waving their hands in front of their faces. The audience laughed politely.

In my experience, it’s a funny skit, especially early in the show.

But in this lady’s show, it just didn’t get laughs.

I think it’s because the lady doing the show was so low energy.

Her delivery was so low-key that she sounded like she was ordering coffee at a drive-through.

She was quiet, monotone, and just…there.

I don’t mean to pick on her. I vaguely recall my interactions with her, and she was nice enough, but just didn’t have any stage presence.

So how do you do it? How do you foster that oh-so-necessary presence or energy?

Especially when there are almost limitless options for your onstage character.

As you might guess, I have a few ideas.

• First, get yourself pumped up before your show.

Walk around backstage and imagine yourself onstage, full of energy.

Pump your fist in the air. Get your heart rate going.

When you walk onstage, do so with intention. Deliberate body language. A purpose in your step.

• Practice good elocution.

Be sure to enunciate your script. No mumbling. Even if your character is more withdrawn, you still need to make sure your audience can hear you clearly.

• Make your gestures deliberate.

Make your gestures broad. How broad will depend on the size of your audience.

If you’re in front of 500 people, your gestures can be as broad as you like.

If you’re in front of only 20 people, you can dial back your physical gestures.

But either way, make your gestures deliberate. Move with intention.

• Don’t assume your material will carry you.

I recently read (and I can’t remember where) a mentalist saying the material won’t carry you.

I agree completely. And yes, we all fall prey to the temptations of new tricks.

Many of us believe that the next trick will make our show complete, with audiences springing to their feet, applauding wildly.

But that won’t happen.

Every good performance starts with you. And each effect or routine must make sense for your character to be doing.

• Exaggerate your facial reactions.

Remember, people respond at least in part to how you respond to these amazing things happening onstage.

When you react, exaggerate your facial reactions. But remember not to overdo it. Remember to react in proportion to the size of your audience.

I remember first learning about this…from a pro wrestler.

I was listening to a podcast where the host was interviewing a veteran wrestler,

He was talking about the need to exaggerate his facial features so the audience members in the upper rows could see how he was reacting.

This was especially true, he said, when he was performing in a big venue, one that held 10,000 people or more.

This was a big adjustment compared to when he was just getting started.

As a beginner, he’d often perform in front of 100-200 people in a high school gym until he hit it big.

• ‘Work’ all sides of the audience.

I remember seeing a lecture at my local IBM when I lived in Pittsburgh. He was primarily a stage guy, working in front of very big crowds.

During his lecture, he talked about mentally dividing the audience into thirds and working your way through those sections: left, right, middle.

This way, you remember to connect with as much of the audience as possible.

You walk toward a given section, make eye contact, gesture, and do the same with each section.

I remember that lecture transforming how I looked at stage work. Even back then, I was doing a fair number of larger shows.

Connecting with your audience physically is yet another simple way to bring a certain amount of energy or intention to your show.

Remember, the stage audience is watching you to see a show and have an experience, not merely watch a bunch of tricks.

Have a great week!

--Cris

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