The narrator of the play sweeps his white gloved hand towards the parting curtains on the stage. The protagonist steps forth and the show begins. She knows the script off by heart. Not because she has walked this wooden floor before, or that she has practiced her lines countless times. There were no rehearsals to fine tune the performance. No Director to give guidance. The audience watches in hushed anticipation.
Even though everything is the first time, she feels like she has done it all before. Is this a loop of a life that has been lived countless times? Has the dim subconscious memory galvanized in her Soul, so that all this unfolding before her, seems so familiar? It's not that she knows what will happen next, but, that when it happens, she recognizes it. Like a country path not tread for years, where every corner reveals a surprise that is both new and intimate at the same time.
In the half dark, the audience have their feelings challenged at every turn. The actor was the part being played, the character that emerged from backstage was real. Integrating this twist in the plot, they feel a mixture of loss and gain. What was once certain and solid now dissipates before their eyes. A sure truth turns out to be a mirage. This loss seems to tip the scales in the mind of the watcher, because what they will gain is yet unknown. The realization has not hit home, that they are not the audience, but, participants in the play.
The world turns upside down. The performance was before the curtains opened and the lights came on the stage. The audience who were left in the dark, will slowly, one by one..take their places. Instead of breathes being held, tears will flow. When what is gained unfolds before them, hearts will heal, minds will comprehend...that none of this is performance.
She knows this. For this has always been the way. It may be a revelation to some, how this seems so straightforward for her. But, when you are not acting, you don't have to try. This is something that means so much in the long run. For now, it is disconcerting. It gives no space, no opening..for any claim of fanciful whim. This, she has proved to herself, so, letting others soak up the truth in their own time, is not her concern. It's obvious when you see it. Running from it, only adds to your pain. She knows this too. Gently, she imparts this to those who she loves. If they can listen and understand, her experience will save them from their own fear. Don't exit the Theater yet dear friends, the show has just begun.
