Singing in front of a crowd can be intimidating for anyone. No matter if you’re new to performing or a veteran, it’s never really easy. Stage fright is quite real and for some people, it never fully goes away.
So how do people deal with getting up on stage in front of an audience? They learn to cope. Sometimes it’s a repeated mantra, maybe it’s simply just taking time for yourself or running in place. Ironically, most of the time, the audience won’t even be able to tell that the person is even feeling uneasy.
There are many things that people worry about when it comes to performing. One of the biggest is forgetting one’s lines. It happens to everyone, even celebrities. Everybody gets distracted at some point. We’re all human.
One 10-year-old girl, Natalie, learned that lesson early on during a performance of the song, “Popular” from the Tony Award-winning musical, Wicked.
Let’s face it, anytime one performs an award-winning piece, it’s easy to feel the pressure. But Natalie was determined to do her very best and leave it all on the stage.
Originally, “Popular” was performed by singer and actress, Kristin Chenoweth who played the role of Glinda.
Chenoweth has made a name for herself in both musical theater and television. She has also done several movies. But she is most often recognized for her performance in musicals such as You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown (where she won a Tony award) and notably, Wicked.
If that doesn’t seem like a lot to live up to consider that the musical’s album won a Grammy in 2005.
Still, none of these things deterred Natalie from giving the song a shot. Though she might have forgotten the lyrics towards the end of her performance, she displayed the confidence of someone who is, well, popular.
As soon as the video begins, it’s quite obvious that Natalie has likely been on a stage before. She exuberates showmanship and a sense of belonging. There doesn’t appear to be a shy bone in her body. Let alone, even the slightest ability to slip up.
“And when someone needs a makeover, I simply have to take over,” she sings with ease.
For those who are not familiar, the song is about a popular girl named Glinda trying to help her roommate, Elphaba, the future Wicked Witch of the West, to become more popular.
The writer of the song, Stephen Schwartz has even said that the lyrics are shallow and simply “empty calories.” Think of those high school teenage films like Mean Girls and you’ll get the idea.
However, he must have done something right with the song as it was ranked at the musical’s second-best song by Laura Reineke of Vulture.
As Natalie belts out the lyrics on stage and acts out the mannerisms of someone who is schooling another on what it is to be tolerated and envied, some of the audience members are getting a kick out of the performance.
Giggles and snickers of excitement and perhaps even nostalgia can be heard from the onlookers. Natalie appears to feed off of the enthusiasm. Even when she forgets the lyrics, she dances around, smiling, and gleefully as if it is all a part of the act. And the audience continues to cheer her on.
When she arrives at the end, she regains her footing and finishes on a high note as the audience applauds and yells as a show of support.
Natalie showed true professionalism and confidence throughout her set despite the hiccups. If you’d like to watch her stellar performance, you can do so below!
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