The Second Circle - Breath

This segment of The Second Circle discusses breath, and one of the first sentences is: "It is the first act you perform and the last." Something about that really hit me, and made me consider how important our breath really is for it to be both the first and last thing we do in this life. The text goes on to describe, "On exhalation, you send what is inside you out into the world, and in doing so you touch and change the world with your breath." As actors, our whole goal is to touch and change others with our work, and we are unable to do so without breath. In order to become a great actor, we must learn to use our breath to its fullest potential. There is a set of questions for the reader to consider, and my responses include that when I breath I feel movement in my stomach and nose, I regularly find myself holding my breath in ballet class, I can often hear my breath, and, as someone who struggles with anxiety, I am often aware of my breath in trying to calm myself down. I didn't answer yes to any of the questions that signify a first circle breather, and I only answered yes to one for third circle, which is that I hear my breath as I draw it in, and on exhalation, force it out. Based on the subsequent sections, it seems I fluctuate between first and third, but it is unusual for me to strongly display the qualities of one or the other. I feel as though I am often slightly in first, or slightly in third breath-wise. I absolutely loved the section where she said, "Don't be frightened of tears. It is all right to cry, and when you do feel your full breath power, you have the right to that power." When I played Juliet this summer, I spent the majority of the second act in tears. I hadn't studied Second Circle then, but I have never felt so fully connected to myself, my character, my cast, and the audience. I wonder now if being so emotionally present forced me into Second Circle and the emotion and tears helped me connect to my breath and my voice, even though I didn't consciously know I was doing so then. After reading this article, I want to set a goal for myself to spend more time in nature and notice how it effects my breath.