Confessions from a Reluctant Leading Lady (part 1)

A little over two months ago, I found out I had booked a role in one of my favorite musicals, “Once on this Island.” Not only that, I had booked the LEAD! Gah!! I was going to play Ti Moune! Once the excitement wore off, the other feelings surfaced. A little fear, a little dread, a little “impostor syndrome.” Part of me is still waiting to hear the director say, “Oops, we made a mistake.”

Ack! My head looks SO BIG on this poster!

Becoming Ti Moune for this show hasn’t been an easy process for me, and yet, it felt like I was made to play this part. Let me explain.

As an improviser, and a long time corporate person, you learn about the importance of teamwork. You play a role on a team. You get to know and trust your teammates, so you can function as a well-oiled machine. You are told to subsume your ego to the will of the group. “There is no I in TEAM.”

a slightly updated version of the cheesy "TEAMWORK" posters of the 90s. Photo Credit: Flikr, Raymond Brettschneider

A slightly updated version of the cheesy “TEAMWORK” posters of the 90s. Photo Credit: Flickr, Raymond Brettschneider

In improv, this means sometimes I’m the lead story in a Harold. Other times it means I play the bit parts and utility roles. All of this is done to serve the story and the comedy.

In my office life, it meant I needed to influence a wide circle of colleagues – graphic designers, packaging engineers, operations, finance, PR, legal, and so many more.

So…how do I do this? How do I play the lead and be a leader without turning into a Diva?

Over the next few posts, I’d like to share what I’m learning as I explore this role of Ti Moune, and how it applies to leadership, managing teams and your business.

I hope you’ll join me.

Skip ahead to part 2.

Skip ahead to part 3.

 

 

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Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. Confessions from a Reluctant Leading Lady (part 2) | Ratana - September 21, 2016

    […] you missed the introduction, you can find it here. After getting cast in one of my dream roles, I went through a roller coaster of emotions about […]

  2. Confessions from a Reluctant Leading Lady (part 3) | Ratana - September 22, 2016

    […] is the last part of my series of confessions. If you missed Part 1, or Part 2, just click on the links. After getting cast in one of my dream roles, I went through a […]

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