Introverts

The other day a workmate asked me what I could tell her about introverts. I said, “Well, I am one.” She said, “What? But you, like get on stage in front of hundreds of people.” As I may have mentioned before I participate in community theater, or ‘amateur theatricals’, as the British say. And I have performed many different parts in many different plays over the years. So, she was correct, and my reply was, “yeah, so? I would guess that most actors are introverts.” She was amazed by that statement.

I haven’t ever seem any statistics on this nor have I done a scientific study. It is just my observation that many if not most actors that I have worked with tend to be introverted. Not all, to be sure, but a lot of them are. Why? A person might think that being on stage is the last place a shy person would want to be. Introverts have the same need for creative outlets as anyone else. And (I am speaking from personal experience now) when you are on stage doing and saying outrageous things, it is not you who is doing it. It is the character. Playing a different person on stage is a wonderful outlet. It allows you to say things you could never say in real life.

But then, thinking about it I wondered if I was confusing the word introvert with shyness. The New Dictionary of Cultural literacy defines introvert as “. . . a person whose motives and actions are directed inward. Introverts tend to be preoccupied with their own thoughts and feelings and minimize their contact with other people.” Whereas a person who is shy is defined as being reserved or having or showing nervousness or timidity in the company of other people. The two terms are related, but they are not exactly the same thing. A person who is introverted could also be shy, but they would not have to be. A shy person would have a tendency to be introverted, but they also would not have to be.

So when I was speaking about actors (and performers in general) I was really making a comment about shyness.  I am a shy person. I am not nearly as shy as I once was. School was a pretty miserable experience for me. I have grown out of some of that timidity, but I still find myself feeling awkward in some social situations.

People who are shy are sometimes looked down upon by society. They are viewed as less intelligent and uninteresting. They can be dismissed, ignored. In my novel Star Liner, my main character is an actor and a singer. I have tried to instill in him some of that shyness that I think inhabits a great many performers. When he is not on stage, he is not suave or cool. But he is an interesting character nonetheless. He is talented, brave, intelligent and resilient. If you were to meet such a person, you would be foolish to dismiss him.

(My novel Star Liner, is now available in paperback or as an e-book through Amazon, or the other usual online sources)

Star Liner