"The show must go on"

Something I have been 'wondering' about recently is the stigma "The Show Must Go On" and whether it is affecting our mental health in this industry. Has the stigma of putting on a brave face gone too far?

This 'title' occurred to me as I was delving into literature regarding mental health within the Performing Arts industry. What I did find was a lot of useful information if you ARE suffering with mental health issues and that lots of charities have recently been set up to help. For example Arts Minds Charity which I have posted a link to at the bottom of this blog, in case anyone would like to visit the website.

I personally believe that yes, the stigma has gone too far, and that people within this industry are taught and trained to keep smiling no matter what, and to leave your feelings at the door. Having done a lot of reading, many people seemed to use the analogy that if you had a broken leg, everyone would tell you to stay at home and rest it, yet if you have a 'broken mind', the reaction is not one of the same.

From doing research into the literature on the mental health within the arts subject, I have also found that there are many findings linking creative people to mental health issues, proving we are more prone to suffering. This is something I am interested in, however, think this would be a difficult topic to research for my inquiry as it is very science based.

One of the most useful pieces of literature I have found was a Podcast called "The 98%" which I have also posted a link to at the end of the blog. I would suggest this is worth a listen to ANYONE in the industry whether they feel down or up! Within this podcast they interviewed Annemarie Lewis Thomas who is leading the movement in discussing mental health issues in colleges more. Talking about rejection from auditions which I think is a huge issue to deal with in this industry, Annemarie suggests that "If people were well, they wouldn't be looking for self affirmation from everyone else". This is something I found really interesting as I had always wondered how in this industry we are meant to deal with constant rejection, and that this must contribute to people suffering in this industry. It is one small factor of many that I think contributes. But when I heard this I totally agreed with her. Maybe the day that I was so upset after I was rejected from an audition was because I wasn't well in the first place, and if I was, it wouldn't have affected me so much. This is something I really need to think on.

I am struggling to specifically find my real area of focus within mental health, and keep tossing and turning between different things. So I thought a blog might help me find what I naturally feel most comfortable and passionate about discussing. And also where the literature has lead me to something of interest.

http://www.artsminds.co.uk/
http://the98percentpod.libsyn.com/s1e4-1-in-3