Ok, 1-2-3: I'm done with the first ever public showing of my one woman show: THE WORLD'S GREATEST!!!
Wow. It feels great to say that. It's been a long time coming--since January 2014, and it's been the bumpiest journey I've been on as an artist.
First off, I just wanna say how much I learned from the show: from writing, to producing, to finally performing. I say the hardest thing about doing a solo show is finding the motivation to start. It's not about the idea; it's not about what you think you wanna do, it's about what you actually do. And then once you do it, you have to take in all the feedback--whether good or bad, stay positive, then smash the shit outta what you have and do it over and over again. It's very hard to find motivation in an environment where no one understands what you're doing (except maybe other artists who have gone through a similar creative process). But I'm happy to say that I fought everything that came my way to make the show what it is. It definitely wasn't easy and I was destroyed emotionally throughout the whole process.
Creatives always say the process and the journey is what makes it so special and I now whole heartedly believe that. You legit have to go through some shit to stand back up again. I swear there are days I felt like giving up. I cried so many times on the subway and streets just thinking about what I'm writing--then when I do it, I get feedback (sometimes people aren't the nicest even if they're your friends), and then I cry some more. Then when you tell your friends what you're doing and they make you feel small. Shit, it was painful. It really was. I can't even describe the pain when the people you call your friend discount your dreams and efforts. It was painful.
But throughout this process, I also discovered what it means to love, and love deeply. Love your work, love the people who support your work, and figure out what it means to love the pain. I guess that's THE ride people talk about when they talk about the journey. You gotta love it to do it, right? And when you do it, make sure you don't lose the mo to get shit done.
Never lose sight of the message you wanna push out. Stay focused. And never ever let shit bring you down. Seriously. That's the biggest takeaway from the show and what I walked away with during this whole process.
So what's next? I'm going to make this into an indie film. I fuckin love indie coming of age films, and I'm gonna make one. And nobody is gonna stop me.
This was only the beginning. Time to hop on another journey with this baby. You down for the ride? ;)