Best Stage Fright Poems
Sweaty palms
And a nervous stomach
Getting up in front of a crowd.
Everyone staring
Waiting and listening
For me to speak out loud.
Butterfly sensation
My voice begins to crack
And the words begin to flow.
I speak and talk
The truth comes out
I stand firm in the glow.
Confidence appears
Fright and worry die
Others judge the sound.
Smiles and laughter
Thoughts achieved
Clapping hands abound.
Come out come out! Where ever you are!
Those of you hiding in the crowd know
who you are.
Come out come out! wherever you are!
those of you scared to speak out loud
in front of a crowd know who you are!
Those of you suffering from stage fright.
Know who you are.
Just the thought of everybody looking at you.
The fear of public speaking has you terrified.
You’re like a deer in a room full of mountain lions.
Some of you say you’re not scared.
You just don’t feel like coming up on stage
Or stand up and speak in the middle
of a classroom. But we know better.
If you had a choice between stepping up to the mic
or kissing the ugliest person on the planet.
We know some of you would pucker up…
When it comes to public speaking, some of you would prefer
to be in the coffin then to give the eulogy at the funeral.
Some of you are scared that
You’re going to embarrass yourself
or that something is going to go wrong,
or that you’ll look stupid.
Well never fear, people want to hear you do well.
They want to see you succeed,
when you speak your mind.
Well that day will come
when you are ready.
That’s when you’ll show
your quiet defiance and determination.
You will be ready to dance
like Nobody is watching.
Sing like no one is listening,
and speak like you’re standing
in an empty room.
If this sounds crazy, then you will learn
that most poets aren’t wrapped too tight.
And that our creative elevators
go up to the top floor.
Where we are in good company.
Because if you haven’t heard,
there are some people who are crazy,
and then there are some people
who are good and crazy.
So which one are you?
Counting imaginary sheep
Hoping to persuade my mind to sleep
Anxious and terrified to step on stage, tomorrow,
Its three am and I'm already searching for courage
Fast forward freeze frame,
My stomach feels like there's a butterfly on flames,
Sweaty palms and salty saliva,
Really wishing I was only the receiver
Not the deliverer,
My alias is called out by the announcer,
But I pretend to be someone else, call me the bouncer,
Piercing eyes in curious skulls loiter,
Searching for this petrified poetic potter,
My soul gathers its last ounces of bravery,
I grace the lime light like I am abolishing slavery,
Testimony, that was a lame first impression ,
So I dice my conscience to amuse your expectations,
For charmed by your gaze you are my inspiration,
Liberation, transformation listen to this elaboration,
Without you there wouldn't be this lyrical respiration,
For my words are transportation,
Your longing hearts are my destination,
I am a citizen and you are my nation
My nourishment when I'm facing starvation,
I'm out. Standing ovation!
A candlelight
A moonlight
A romantic set
A single heart
Give me laughter
I promise a forever after,
An unforgettable evening
And loneliness will be forgotten
A broken promise
A stolen kiss
A forbidden romance
A last dance
I’ll be your partner
I'm a novice, you too a beginner
Holding your hand through the tango and the waltz
Through life's stage fright
A broken champagne bottle
A little hesitation in the middle
Love is fragile
Love is brittle
Let’s take it a step at a time
Our melody in harmony like a chime
In the journey of hearts
Let's trust in each others
my feet aching, body shaking, knees weakening
when I get up front
I get attacked by my noble subconscious
my self esteem is lower than my toe print
I just hope it understands
that's ima stomp it down
In this big black abyss
ideas roam free n wild
my plot
I keep it discreet
the world aint ready for what my thoughts submerge
I consider myself a mental giant amongst my peers
the funny thing is, everything else around is up to scale
still a beginner, I'm at the bottom of my league
but I'm not worried, I cant be shook
coz I know I cant scale my way to the top
and maybe freefall
just to do it all over again
its addictive
I'm not different, yaul are the just the same
ima fine tuned automobile
with a heart of steel
It's true that we're all actors,
But the best of us don't know it;
The ones with glee and rage,
who aren't afraid to show it,
But some of us were born,
with consciences too small:
While watching others mourn,
we feel nothing at all.
Without a doubt, we're the worst people,
You'll never find us in a steeple.
Perhaps we'll live under your bed,
Or as the demons in your head.
Wherever we go, we bring dread,
And we don't care, because we're dead.
We're the ones who realize,
No man lives after he dies,
It makes us feel nigh dead inside,
Until the day that we have died.
What saves us from an early time,
Is finding others with like-minds,
But sometimes we only find one,
And good thoughts die, once they've gone.
We're the ones who hope surpasses,
When tears squeeze through our eyelashes.
Burning questions sear our tongues,
As we choke on smoke filled lungs,
Ever fearful to reach out,
Once someone has shown us doubt.
Silence...
...Just wait...
Wait a couple seconds...no, really.
Just WAIT...
In the distance,
a tremble of the air itself.
A subtle quiver of it's molecular structure.
A charge, causing your hair to come alive.
*CRACK* A singularity so vivid, so dazzling,
it blinds you,
forming indistinct bubbles in your vision.
Then another, farther away, not as luminous.
Another, and another. Dozens of fractures in the sky,
shining with voltages so high, so powerful;
temperatures blistering hot,
Searing and broiling anything they touch.
Fiercier than the sun's corona.
Vapourisation.
Retorts of thunderous applause,
following seconds behind, build up.
Unsure at first, escalating. Deafening.
Frightening all into submission.
Applause for such grandeur.
Overlooking the dark and forested valley,
we observe nature's perfect opera.
Above us,
angry violet mamma roil,
bubbling over the base of the storm.
Faded flashes,
illuminating the clouds,
casting mauve highlights and indigo shadows.
Far off applause,
the audience of another, higher up show.
The tempest isn't quite done yet,
the show must go on.
Not 10 metres behind us,
a tree explodes, its trunk boiled and charred.
Simultaneously, a roaring, reverberating crackle-snap ignites the air,
blasting our eardrums past their record limits.
A roasting heat wave blows over our heads,
shoving us forward, searing the tips of our hair.
Screaming and shouting, we stumble away,
no longer amazed at this horrifying opera.
Tripping down the slope,
we roll into the thick forest below us,
colliding with trees and shrubbery.
More flashes, tailed by the sky guffawing at us,
as we've become the joke of the show.
Horror surfacing on our faces,
we blunder towards the jeep.
Only thing is...
all that's left of the jeep is a smoldering carcass...
Real fear sets in,
as we discover ourselves
Trapped.
Isolated.
Entirely alone.
And up on the stage of nature's prime opera.
And we're the laughing stock.
The dispensibles.
No way out.
Why does this light inside scare me?
I'll lock it down tight in the hopes to spare me
the separation.
I want to live from a higher vibration,
revelation and wonder,
but fear of isolation drags me under,
steals my thunder and dims the glow.
All this creation and nothing to show.
All those notes played just for the wind,
those shapes that stayed locked in my mind,
those words stuck between pages on bookshelves in sheds
or lost between faces so stuck in my head,
good as dead and going nowhere.
There's magic when you learn how to share,
when you don't care,
lay yourself bare and trust.
Tear down your walls and scream if you must
but scream it true
from the depths of what it means to be you,
step out from the queue and show it.
They can't do what you do and they know it
and they'll stop for a moment without even knowing
why they're touched so much by this love that you're showing.
Growing by giving, living by sharing,
loving by trusting and not caring
what the others may say.
Thoughts of this fade away when you just play
unafraid and unaware
of some deep recognition in their stare
of this shape, hitherto unseen
of a heart now open,
a dream within a dream.
Sitting on stage
The glare of the audience immobilizes my every move
Is there a way this paralysis will soothe?
The lights suddenly blare
Like a deer bathed in headlights
How can I escape from this radiant bear?
The conductor baton rises into the soundless air
Sweating, stammering, shivering
Will this be my final prayer?
The sound of an A fires from a clarinet
Bow on string, I imitate the shrill
This magical note seems to be my fever pill
A-D, D-G, A-E
Instrument seems in tune
But will this miniscule fact solve my problem soon?
As the chief baton swings side to side
Flickering images in my mind crash like a tsunami tide
Joy, Love, Hardship, and Harmony
Music conducted the opening to my passion ceremony
Fire ignites my being
Like bungee-jumping off a bridge
The words “Anything is possible!” now beaming
Like poetry, music is an art
Raw emotion strangles uniformity
Expression bears no limit
Creativity beats as our vital body part
*This poem is dedicated to a cure for stage fright (bless those poor souls)
-M&M
My sleep stages are Moon phases combing
my limbic system, where I touch electric chords
singing my survival.
The words I compose dwell in privacy.
I blow the candles out after they are written.
And they wait, poised to be expressed.
But like a child in a nightmare,
I am naked before my audience.
My own words belong to someone else.
My lips move out of sync with my thoughts.
A.I. writes a better imitation of my poems.
It will speak its version of me,
parrot its empty parody of me.
You’ll enjoy its rendering of me
far better than me.
Like the first motion pictures,
The audience fears the A.I. train
will mow them down.
Magical thinking about flickering
images on a wall enlisted the same
primal fears as flickering algorithmic
texts.
But no phases of the Moon touch
them. No electric chords will sing, and
no privacy in candlelight is felt
in them.
Instead, we will forget that A.I.
was ever scary.
We will watch it mimic life
like reruns of
nearly forgotten movies.
Published: Caesura - Summer 2023
Stagefright!
I take the mic, ready to start my set
I can just see their faces, the laughs that I’ll get
People still milling and taking their places
No empty seats, no empty spaces.
I’ve waited for years to get my shot.
Headlining this place, Finally! Top spot.
Ducking and diving I’ll be sending them wild
With my charm and my wit they’ll soon be beguiled.
They’ll be eating from the palm of my hand
I’m the best damn comic in all of the land.
I’ve done my time in the working men’s clubs
I’ve paid my dues, I’ve paid my subs.
The crowd uprising as the curtains raise
Deafening cheers, I am sure to amaze.
I look to my left then I look to my right
couldn’t fathom the pressure, didn’t know of the fright
This is not how I planned it, not what I hoped.
My energy gone I feel as if doped.
My lips have gone dry my throat it feels closed.
Sweat begins forming I feel so exposed.
I can’t believe what is happening
confidence gone it’s totally maddening.
I’ve fallen apart, I quiver and quake.
I just want to run, this pressure can’t take
.
Well, all over now totally done
career all finished set like the sun.
All blown away. I bit the dust.
Nerves got the better I was totally crushed.
I had hit the big time, the top of my game
Everyone knew me. They all knew my name,
but now that’s all done, I’m now in the gutter
Came crashing down, the ultimate shutter.
No more big stages. No after parties
No VIP’S, and no flash soirees
when all said and done I just couldn’t cut it
I froze up on that stage and I had to submit.
My glory days gone they’re all in my past.
I thought I’d be rich, simply having a blast.
Always climb up didn’t think I’d come down.
Look at me now a child’s party clown.
She stood amidst the crowd
Cleared her throat,
Her mind as well.
Her fingers sweat, her knees shake,
Opened the question she earlier picked.
She read, her voice trembling,
"Do you believe in fairies? Kindly explain."
A laughter broke from the audience,
Cachinnated devilishly;
filled the hall.
Her fear grew, slowly enveloping
Her eyes start to water;
Flooding the very windows of her soul.
She opened her lips: now cracked and dry.
She stammers
She tried to reach for words
In the blank state of her mind.
From the crowd a whisper she hears,
Passing through her ears like a slithering snake.
Every hiss punctures her soul
Her spirit and all.
She stood there for minutes;
Minutes that seem like years.
The torment was forever.
She tried to compose herself,
But the snake was herculean.
But all in vain she fought,
Darkness filled her eyes,
The torment was done;
It's over.
Neither a word or a breath
from her mouth escaped.
She fell to her knees,
Goodness gracious,
She swooned.
On the stage,
Lights are blaring,
Crowds in a rage,
Everyone is staring;
Eyes are watering,
Lip is quivering,
Knees are buckling,
Thoughts keep racing;
Will I mess up?
Will I pass out?
Will I throw up?
There’s so much doubt;
What were the notes?
What were the words?
I just might choke,
My memories a blur;
The crowd is waiting,
To hear my singing,
My heart is racing,
My head is ringing;
I open my mouth,
To begin the song,
The first not goes south,
I started all wrong;
I close my eyes,
I start again,
In my mind I
Think its time to win;
I sing the first note,
Right on key,
I open my eyes and
The crowd cheers for me;
There is now,
No more fear,
I take a bow while
They clap and cheer.
My character's poem!! Enjoy ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I can't stand it -
I wanna stand up, but how?
I am full of anguish
I have stage fright...
I can't stand it...
I'm a bit scared...I'm unprepared...
I want to get rid of stage fright, but HOW?
I might be late
I wanna be there on time, but when do I get there?
Oh...at 4:00 PM...ooh great.
It's 3:07 PM...happy to say everything's gonna turn out okay...hopefully
But I still can't shake this dread that I feel
It's so unreal...
I have stage fright...
Well...I'll try to make it on time and do my interview with all of my might.
But it's embarrassing - I know the drill nevertheless
I think... I always think I could reach up to success
I always worry, but what is there to be worried about?
I'm gonna make it on time...no doubt about that.
everything's going to be alright
I'll make my ride on time...
I can't stand it...
I want to perform on stage with some positivity in mind
I must use some of my strength
I'm such a wimp though...
Oh I should try to build some courage
But I can't stand my ground...I can't stand on stage
I can't stand it...I can't stand it...at all.
I must stand...tall
Or I'll slip and fall...
I am so selfish...but tell me:
How do I stand out?
I can't stand it...
I want to stand out, but how?
On stage at last
Faces the audience ~
Her final gasp