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Post-Performance Recovery: An Introduction + Exercise

April 27, 2017April 27, 2017 By MairinNo Comments

If you’ve been clicking around my website or following me on social media at all, you’ve probably seen the term post-performance recovery come up a *few times (*read, a lot). It’s a pretty catchy phrase, and seems pretty easy to understand. But since I talk about it so much, I thought it might be useful to explain what I actually mean by it. So… Post-Performance Recovery. What the heck is it? In many ways, it is exactly what it sounds like: A process to assists artists in releasing their performance experiences and rebalancing their energy, so they can transition back into their everyday lives. This is a fancy way of saying it’s a “cool down”. Think of sports. Before an athlete competes in an event, they go through a warm up routine to prepare themselves. Afterwards, they follow a cool down routine to help their body recuperate from all the energy the just exerted. Many performers follow a similar routine, except for one thing: most...

Updates: Workshops, E-Books, Design and More!

April 6, 2017 By MairinNo Comments

Wow! It’s been about two months since the launch of this blog and website, and a lot has been happening at Five Winds! Between writing blog posts, I’ve been working hard at moving forward a bunch of other projects. Busy (but also fun) times! So in light of this, I thought it would be a good idea to update you on what I’ve been up to. So check it out below! There’s even some things for you to participate in too. :) Workshop: Earth, Water, Sun – Restorative Yoga for Spring First off, I’m excited to announce that I will be offering a restorative yoga workshop at Gerrard Art Space in May. Come relax with me in this beautiful gallery and community space. If you haven’t had the chance to practice while surrounded by a collection of stunning visual art, I highly recommend it! There's a maximum of 10 participants, so if you’re interested, sign up early! Sunday, May 7, 2017 7:00pm – 9:00pm Gerrard...

That Tingly Feeling: An Exercise for Feeling Energy + Mandy Moore

March 16, 2017March 17, 2017 By MairinNo Comments

We talk a lot about energy on this blog. We’ve talked about it as vibration. We’ve talked about how it transforms us when we perform. We’ve talked about how art has its own unique energy. And we’ve talked about how it can be hard to let go of that energy after a performance. But what does energy feel like? How do we experience energy moving through our systems? The truth is…I can’t exactly tell you. Here’s the deal… We are all unique beings (surprise!), and following that, the way we express energy is unique. We know this as performers. Think about it. This is why 4 actors can play the role of Hamlet and all their performances are different. Or 5 musicians can play the same song and they all sound different. Heck, 5 musicians can play the same instrument and the instrument sounds different! So it follows that the way each of us feels energy is different from one person to the next. So...

Releasing Character: Lessons from Hugh Jackman and Wolverine + EXERCISE

March 2, 2017March 1, 2017 By MairinNo Comments

My first memory of Hugh Jackman will always be from this film. I mean, what more could I have wanted from an early 2000s romantic comedy: Meg Ryan, time travel, a man in tails, Liev Schreiber, margarine…I’m not seeing a downside here! Oh, and Bradley Whitford too. ;) But regardless of my teenage taste in movies (don’t judge…), the role that really defined his career involved having giant retractable knives sticking out of his hands. Yes, in between several Broadway runs, hosting the Tony’s multiple times and winning a Golden Globe Award, the character that has stuck by his side for 17 years has been James (Logan) Howlett, better known as the X-Men’s* Wolverine. *Side Note: The X-Men were my gateway superheroes. I was a big fan of the animated series in the 90s. This was probably largely due to the fact that it was one of the only cartoons that had women heroes (Storm, Jean Grey...pretty awesome). I can still sing the...

Performance Energy, Part 2: A Harry Potter Theory

February 16, 2017February 28, 2017 By MairinNo Comments

In my last blog post, we began exploring the idea of performance energy. We discussed energy as vibration and the exchange of energetic vibrations that happens during a performance. And we also started talking about another energetic force at work when we perform. That’s where we’ll pick up here. If you have haven’t read the previous post yet, you can do that here. Then join us as we continue to explore performance energy. A spark. That little flash of energy that transforms us from our everyday selves into performers. When do we feel it? In the moment of stepping from offstage to onstage? In the seconds when our hands first grasp our instruments? In that breath that brings the microphone to our lips? What happens in that moment? Where does that burst of energy come from? That my friends, is the power of the performance itself. Let me explain. In the previous post, we talked about how we give off energetic vibrations in everything we do. This...

Performance Energy – Part 1: Good Vibrations

February 3, 2017March 1, 2017 By MairinNo Comments

We all know there’s an extra special something that happens when we perform. We’ve all felt it. But how do you quantify it? How do you describe that lift you get from the audience watching you, that jolt you feel when they respond to your performance? What do you call that magic that transpires between you and your fellow performers when you put on an amazing show? We often call it “energy”. But what does this really mean? Energy is one of those terms that gets thrown around a lot. We talk about good energy and bad energy, how we get energy from the food we eat, that we have no energy left when we’re exhausted and that we feel energized by a new idea. We use the same word, “energy”, to describe all of these different “states of being”. But if we ask ourselves what we mean by the word “energy” in all of these examples, I think many of...

What’s this all about? – The Who’s and What’s of Act(ing) Mindfully

January 26, 2017March 1, 2017 By MairinNo Comments

Hello! Welcome to Act(ing) Mindfully. I’m so glad you’re here and that you’re interested in exploring along with me. So what’s this blog all about? Being a performer is a rewarding, ever-changing and often challenging life choice. Beyond the everyday mental and physical rigor it requires of us to keep our skills in shape, it also demands a lot from us emotionally and energetically. Unlike many other careers, performing requires us to fully commit our whole selves to it: body, mind, emotions and spirit. It can be incredibly invigorating, but at the same time it can be incredibly draining. Many of us find ourselves caught in this constant flux of energy, unable to keep ourselves grounded both on and off stage (or camera). But is it possible to be a great performer and live a balanced life? Yes! That’s what we’ll explore here. Who am I? My name is Mairin Smit and I’m a theatre and movement artist, teacher and artist wellness coach. Artist wellness coach? Yes,...