The Magic of "If"
The ‘magic’ of an arts education is that it helps us to see ourselves and the world in new ways. In theatre, that happens through a ‘hypothetical question’ that every actor answers, every time they go on stage. It’s called the ‘Magic If’ and it works something like this…
“If I were this particular character, in this particular situation, in this particular place, at this particular time …. How would I act?” This question is so impactful that it has the power to completely transform an actor into another person. Just like … MAGIC! It works by asking the actor to step into another person’s shoes.
It doesn’t ask the actor “If I was there how would I act?”
It asks how would this particular person with their particular hopes and fears and history and dreams for the future. How would ‘they’ specifically behave? It asks the actor to perceive the specific details of the situation they find themselves in requiring the actor to fully understand the situation both broadly and deeply. It requires the actor to know and understand the particular place and how it specifically impacts the way they will communicate and finally it requires them to think about time in terms of cause and effect, time of the day, season and even era. So much to think about in one little question called The MAGIC IF.
As you can see, in order to answer this question appropriately the actor has to draw on a knowledge of psychology, sociology, philosophy and history before they even get to the ‘technical skills’ of performing.
But this question is not just useful for actors. It’s useful for everyone. And here are five reasons why I believe THE MAGIC IF is truly magical.
1) The MAGIC IF can improve your Social Skills. By using THE MAGIC IF we can empathise how it feels to be in someone else’s situation thus helping us to be more open and curious as to why the person might be behaving in the way they are. It thus allows us to know in advance how someone may react and how we might most effectively deal with that. The Magic If provides greater self awareness, awareness of others and compassion. And all of this equals emotional intelligence.
2) The MAGIC IF can make you more Creative: The very question places you in a state of connecting things and finding new possibilities. This is of itself is a creative act. The ‘Magic If’ teaches us ‘a way of thinking’ rather than what to think. We become ‘active’ actors in our world rather than passive consumers. We choose the frame we apply to the world and become aware of how we shape our world in new ways by thinking in new ways. Our thoughts are seen as alterable and responsive to change. ‘What if’ I tried this ‘new’ way.
3) The MAGIC IF can make you smarter: Yes, really. I mentioned earlier that when we ask ‘What if’ we are often led headlong into unchartered territory. I might ask what if I was suffering anorexia or was getting married or was living in Spain, but I’ve never suffered anorexia, got married or lived in Spain and thus it may lead me to finding out more about these things.
4) The MAGIC IF Encourages Curiosity and Exploration: By asking ‘IF?’ we are encouraged to see things with fresh eyes and to expand our knowledge, understanding and skills. We are encouraged to expand and challenge our thinking rather than to simply reinforce and argue for our existing way of doing things. This happens through asking questions like “What if I’m completely wrong about (insert subject)?” “What if the opposite of what I think is true?” Try it. It’s amazing.
5) The MAGIC IF Empowers Self Invention/ Reinvention: If allows us to change ourselves. I once shared a story about how I lost 10 kgs by playing with THE MAGIC IF as an experiment. I decided that I would behave ‘as if’ I was an elite athlete for a small period of time. Each time I went to the fridge I asked myself what choice would this elite athlete make. Each time I got out of bed I asked what would they do and then did it. After a little while, the reduced calories, bigger workouts and greater care for stretching and taking care of my body (because that’s what elite athletes do) resulted in you guessed it – increased health and fitness. No diets or exercise plans. Just an extended session of pretend. Now I’m sure this approach has its limitations but it begs the question what would happen if we all decided who we would like to become and acted as if we were already that person. Just by asking ‘What if?’ And then acting ‘As If’ can we become someone else?