No More Drama

Published January 22, 2008
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By Bridget Treco

Upon coming to college, I realized that my experiences in theatre translate into my off-stage life. I’ve always been a sensitive, emotional person, but I never realized how intense it was until I made the transition from high school to college. Throughout high school, I made drama in all areas of my life: with guys, friends, and myself. Because theatre has always been such a big part of my life, drama doesn’t just follow me, it rides on my back.

But do I unnecessarily create drama in my life because I have permission to create it on the stage? I think the answer is, yes. I see too many plays and movies and analyze too many characters not to want to be those characters- to dwell on that beautiful pain that I see them suffer through. This may not be relatable for anyone not in theatre, but let me ask you this: Are we taking the correct approach to finding happiness, or are we trying to make plays and songs and movies out of our own lives? I think in some ways we are in order to emulate the artistic beauty we see in other people’s work. Are our own lives too dull? With the out-of-control wave of reality television, I find myself glued to the drama of “real people” on shows like Laguna Beach and The Hills. But most of us know that even their stories are a bit scripted. Drama has become glamorous, and the media has given our generation an obsession with conflict. We want our lives to seem like a movie, even if it’s a movie filled with pain and controversy, just to make it more interesting for us.

Now that I’m in college, I need to forget about all the high school drama and focus on separating my work on stage from my life off stage. I would suggest that anyone with the same thrill for conflict do what I’m doing now. Don’t create pain that you don’t need. There’s no more space for unhappiness in the world, no matter how aloof and beautifully complicated you’re trying to seem. Just try to detach yourself from the part you play or the song you sing, and live your own life. In the end, it’s your story you are telling, and no one else’s. In the wise words of Mary J. Blige, “No more drama.”

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