Unnerved

A relatable and practical roadmap for combating each performer's unique brand of performance anxiety by discovering and managing root emotional drivers-it is designed to uncover what makes each individual performer "tick."

Melissa Plamann provides an engaging and humorous book, chock-full of data, for anyone who experiences performance anxiety in any music and performing arts discipline at any age. After taking an objective stance to define "performance anxiety," she examines treatment options, including medication and several types of therapy. She delves into personal responses to anxiety, looking at emotions of fear, shame, and anger, and then shows how performers can address and start managing their unique brand of performance anxiety based on these personal responses. Chapters deal with myriad other elements impacting performance anxiety, including the mind-body connection, suggesting that emotional turmoil and stress cause physical ailments and exacerbate the somatic expressions of anxiety. Also addressed are miscellaneous issues that predispose performers to increased anxiety: educational settings, hierarchical relationships, hormonal shifts, gender, and even the pandemic.

This book offers practical advice and insight for performers, gleaned from the author's lifetime of personal performance and practice as well as hundreds of interactions with students navigating their own performance anxiety.