As anyone will tell you. I am not a shy person (or at least I don't think I am.) But I have a single caveat to that rule. I can speak to a crowd UNLESS it is a "performance." Once it has any hint of being prewritten or rehearsed, I become a frozen statue, unable to behave in any reasonable way. All those of you working in the field of human psychology may have a "condition' you can point to but this baffles me.
I won't name the play or the venue as I would not want to spoil the "surprise" if you go. A friend had invited me to attend last week and we had amazing seats in the first row. At intermission, my friend announced that it was just too loud; several other seniors agreed and they left. I had taken out my hearing aids and decided to stay - I hate to not know the end of a story. Near the end of the second act, one of the actors singled me out and asked me to join her on the stage. My role was simple and had no lines. Unable to figure out how to decline without a fuss, I followed her to the stage. She explained what I was to do, and we did it, Then she led me, a completely "frozen statue," back to my chair. I was shocked when people congratulated me on my way out of the theatre. It must have been irony!
