[Bards] Thanks from Finnacan

barrett1 at cox.net barrett1 at cox.net
Thu May 10 14:51:50 PDT 2007


---- Alden Drake <alden_drake at sbcglobal.net> wrote: 
> 
> 1a) Be active in the performance community.  Stay connected with the 
> community in communication, participation, etc.  Don't think your work 
> is finished now and back off.  Like a black belt in martial arts, now 
> the *real* work should begin for you.  Don't settle for what you know; 
> continue to learn and grow.

Frankly, I'm not sure it's possible for me to stop performing. It's vital to me. Call me a ham or an attention junkie or  just a born entertainer, but avoiding performing would be an effort. As for growing, I'll never be satisfied with my current work. I keep composing stories while looking into other aspects of performance, some of which are already in the pipeline and will hopefully become a regular part of my work within the next year or two.
> 
> 1b) Be active in the Laurel community.  We non-Laurels like to see 
> Laurels, who are involved in what we are doing, being active with the 
> Laurellate.  It says to us, "This Laurel will represent our art (and us) 
> to the other Laurels."

This is a legit point and I'm glad you brought it up. Performance is very difficult for the art community in general to measure or judge, much less the Laurels,  and they often turn to performers for feedback or information. It's been made clear to me that I'll likely be asked to weigh in on these issues along with the other performing laurels.
Know this, I have no use for what I call "front porch syndrome". Just as it is the responsibility of artists to get their work seen and their talents known throughout the kingdom, so it is the job of the Laurel to seek it out and nourish it, not wait for it to come to them for their approval or dismissal.

> 
> 2) Be a leader.  Laurels should inspire, mentor, guide, encourage, 
> promote, teach, judge, etc. the up and coming performers.  Good leaders 
> are those who set good examples.

See, now I'm in trouble.
 I'm a cad, you see, a completely shameless jokester and a terrible flirt. I also find I'm embarressed to accept help and offers of gifts, and so in trying not to impose on folks, I may inadvertantly offend them. The social aspects of this thing are frightening. I'm not sure how Finnacan the storyteller and the public image of the Laurel are going to combine successfully without hurting one or the other. They say they don't expect me to become a peer because they already consider me one, I'm just being recognized. This is a truism for all peers. 
I'm a little worried.
It's funny. When you think about what might happen when they offer you the job, you wonder who might vote no and why, or who might disagree with your elevation. Once they offer it, however, it's the standard in your mind for what a Laurel should be that starts gnawing at you, not any criticism.

> 3) Help raise the bar.  Encourage an improvement in the quality of 
> performances, either directly (by teaching) or indirectly (by inspiring 
> others with your performances).
> 
I'll try, but I expect to be lost in the rising tide of dedicated performers in this kingdom, each one pursuing their own improvement. The bar has raised substantially over the years and I'm not sure there's any stopping it. I plan to buckle in for the ride with some of those plans I mentioned earlier.

> 4) Enjoy your art!
> 
> ~Alden
> 
Thank you for sharing this Alden. I agree, I think it's a good topic for discussion and it should be discussed with honesty. Make no mistake, I still want to see you at my vigil. We need to get to know one another.

~Finnacan

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