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Do you think that performing is still an effective way to make a living / make a career out of it?

Firstly, I disagree because performing busking nowadays is are not an effective way to have a steady source of income. Buskers nowadays are hard to come by as due to covid-19 people tend to stay away from crowded places. This causes buskers to have a hard time performing as there is not much of a crowd as there was before covid-19, this results in them not having a steady income.

Secondly, a performing arts career is difficult as there is competition to stand out from the rest. For example, for busking, there are other buskers on the streets. There would be competition among buskers and each busker has to come up with a different act to keep the audience entertained.  audiences would not be only watching one busker so they would not earn much. It Performing also requires talent for a busker to perform like having a good voice, so not many people could be a performing artist.

However, some may argue that a performing arts career is achievable as long as they have a stable fanbase. People with a huge presence on social media could have a huge sales of tickets as their fans would pay any amount to watch their performance.

Currently due to the current pandemic performers now try to adapt to the situation by hosting zoom and online performances for fans to enjoy without having to actually be at the concert to experience it. This is more convenient for fans and performers hence there would be a larger fanbase.

Conversely,Personally, I still think that performing arts is not a sustainable career choice here in Singapore. Singapore's education system emphasizes more on more important subjects like math and English which are vital when choosing a career path. Perhaps, when public perception of the performing arts change, then only would a performing arts career make sense to me.

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Qn. Have you ever performed in a public area before?

Yes i have, when i was in primary school i joined many talent  competitions where I sang in public and i actually won the first prize before. COMPETITION (WHO?, WHAT? WHERE? HOW? WHY? WHEN?) At first i was hesitant to do perform because i had stage fright and I was scared of people judging me or even just looking at me. i was also afraid i might mess up on stage. however, with much motivation from my peers and teachers I mustered  the courage to step on stage and let my voice be heard. it is an experience i would never forget because it was the first time i sang infront of a large crowd solo. in the future i would definitely sing again in a  competition, and with this experience it taught be to be more confident in myself and not care what others think about me. Due to this past experience I’ve been able to participate in more competition and (avoid repeating vocab) gain more experience to hone my singing.

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Qn. What do you think the passers-by are feeling in the video?

I think the passers-by are feeling that the juggler is not  impressive and that he is just another person trying to gain some attention and make a living through performing.

I see a busker juggling three pins at once while many people walk pass him. I think the place is at a popular street as there are many passers-by. Sadly, not many people were paying attention to him as there were only two groups of audience that were watching him in the video.

The video was most likely taken pre covid as there is nobody wearing a mask.

There are mainly adults and families in the video with children being making up the majority of the audience of the busker. Most adults are just walking past him and not paying much attention to him. allowed going his performance But once in a while there will be some people who take a second look to appreciate his performance and donate some of their loose change. The children who are his audience would most likely be fascinated with the busker as they have never seen anything like it.

If I was walking on that street and saw him, I would stop for a second and choose to watch him perform, maybe even give him my loose change if I had any. I would honestly feel sad for the busker as there are not many people willing to stop and watch him perform, let alone donate their loose change. As there are not many people watching him perform and donating, I would try to stay there and watch for as long as I can as it might make the busker feel much better and hopefully, I would be able to get more passers-by to notice him as well.

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QUESTION: what do you think the people are thinking about in this video?
I think most of the passersby are admiring him as he is a street performer. Being a street performer, sometimes it can be a tiring job as once u see a person walk by u have to perform to them. most of the passerby will just walk by the street busker without paying any attention to him. However some people will stop in their tracks and look at his performance and sometimes give him a tip. The video shows a person juggling 3 bowling pins at what seems like Orchard Road during dusk. I think that he is doing this to make a living out of performance arts. If I were one of the passers-by in the video, I would feel/think/do... (Must out yourself in the shoes of the people in the video!)

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Have you or anyone you know tried performing in public before?

I still have a vivid memory of how one of my primary school classmates busked on the streets before. He loved singing and always sang at Orchard Rd on the sidewalks where the passers-by would occasionally gather around him to enjoy his performances and applaud him after. Despite being like a cat on hot bricks during the first few times he performed, he did not let his let his anxiety that get the better of him and still managed to perform to the best of his abilities . I remembered the time when he had performed in school and i was part of the crowd. I could tell that he was enjoying himself and he was a great inspiration to me. Seeing him overcome his nervousness and performing so well, it inspired me to overcome difficulties put in my way and do what i like too. Personally, I would not participate in performing in public as I would rather stay in my comfort zone and be part of the audience as I am highly strung at facing the public eye. However, at the same time, I think the idea of performing in public is awesome as you are able to showcase your talent or interest in arts.

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Qn.: Describe a memorable performance that you have watched before. Why did you like it?

I remember strolling along through the streets of orchard road with my parents and as we stopped in front of Takashimaya, there was a busker with an eye catching outfit that left an impeccable memory in impression on me. When we took a closer step, she started her performance with a rendition cacophony of ear soothing music, much to the delight of playing at our ears. Taking a clearer view, we realised that she was actually a disabled street performer and it gave me a whole new impression of street performers. She has gained a lot of respect and applauses from the crowd as she persevered her performance with her disabilities. When the performance ended, everyone surrounding gave out thunderous clapping applauses which aroused the crowd’s attention and many gave out generous tips. What was your initial impression of disabled people? You can elaborate how this experience changed your perspective.

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Do you think kids should start performing from a young age?

Personally I do agree that children should start performing from a young age as they can have more exposure and experience when it comes to performing on stage especially in front of a large crowd . in addition it also helps them to gain confidence in themselves when it comes to performing on stage as i feel that having confidence is very salient and it should be cultivated from young.

another reason why i think children should perform at a young age as that there might be an opportunity of them to discover what that they have a talent, because If one never tries to step out of his or her comfort zone, one try they would never know if they have a potential for something. Discovering a talent from young enables them to able to nurture their talent from young and slowly become proficient  get better in the area that they are talented in

On the other hand , children would also feel pressured to perform and face immense stress. They and might not be able to handle criticism well as they are too young to understand constructive criticism. Therefore, they may take the criticism too personally and which can lead to emotional stress.

My own personal experience is that i started performing on stage from a young age. In Primary one i was asked to join the dance cca and before i knew it, a year later i am performing in the SYFs. It was one of my first time performing on stage, especially it being a competition. After that first performance, there were many other opportunities to perform as i was also learning the piano and had to participate in piano recitals and examinations. Thus, with that many opportunities to perform in front of people, i have gained a lot of confidence and it is not as nerve wrecking to perform, as compared to my first few performances.

Henceforth i feel that it’s important for children to start performing at a young age , gaining their to gain self-confidence, a sense of responsibility and discipline to hone their talents, and from young.

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Should performing arts be compulsory in our educational system?

No. i don’t think performing arts should be compulsory in our educational system

Firstly, i disagree since performing arts is not sustainable.it is difficult to make a career out of it. people need to be the very best to be able to make a living or to be at the top of the performing arts world . if you are unable to stay at the on top you will be easily replaced by new people. Due to covid 19 especially the performing arts is greatly affected. The size of the crowd has greatly shrunk and people are also less willing to see the buskers perform live .Of course it is hard for the performers as they will need to attain fame for their followers to see their performance

Secondly, the performing arts career is difficult. It is a competitive career which requires a lot of talent and hard work. No one is born gifted to play a instrument or to have that x-factor while performing. It is all about absolute resilience to be able to stay relevant or well-respected in the performing arts sector. Not giving up after major setbacks also makes it hard for most people to make a living in the performing arts.

However some may argue that the performing arts career is achievable and effective if they have a stable fan base and is well paying when they are famous. The performers have huge presence on social media which guarantees a stable source of income. They are actively posting and interacting with their fans so they are able to gain a huge fan base. When performers are famous they will get plenty of opportunities to market themselves and chance to perform. The commission they earn is really high as well so it can be a lucrative career.

Performing arts to me is about developing extra skills that i may use in the future. Although i am not in the performing arts cca but i always wanted to be one. I am always envy about my friends who are able to be on stage to perform on stage and present themselves in front of a large audience under so many people's eye.Although i do not have a chance to join the performing arts cca. I have been on stage to perform before. In NCC we got to present to the school the freestyle drills performance. When i was on stage i was very frightened, and it really took a toll on my performance. It did not seem as smooth as when I was training. I still manage to survive this ordeal  but this incident has scarred me for life. So, I would not perform on stage again due to my anxiety.

In conclusion I still believe that performing arts should not be compulsory in our education system as not everyone is cut out for it.

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One can only succeed when they have talent. Do you agree?

I disagree that one can only become successful perform when they have talent.

I believe that determination is the key to success in any job the performing art industry . If a person has the talent but no willpower, one will not get far as they would not have the passion and the yearning to achieve more. If a hurdle was to come by their way , they would most probably give up while those who has the determination would get through the difficult time and persevere to achieve their goals. preserve

Practice makes perfect so people can practice repeatedly to obtain the skill for the performance. People who have no born natural talent but have a great passion to work hard and practise repeatedly can succeed in the performance. However if someone with talent doesn’t not work hard and practice, he or she will eventually fall behind as others who might not be as talented will overtake them with repeated practice and experience.

However, some may say that there are people who are born with talent can achieve success easily. They can easily learn a skill and even excel in it which may be hard for some other people. For example, a Korean band called Aespa who immediately gained popularity when they debuted in the k-pop industry due to their singing and dancing talent which captivated the world.

But I still disagree that one needs talent to be successful. Especially now with the pandemic crisis, performers are not able to perform as freely as they used to due to the restrictions and measurements. There are other factors that determine your success. One such factor is perseverance. Perseverance is the key to motivate performers to work extra hard to be able to perform and find new ways to promote themselves and their acts . However now Singapore’s restrictions has relaxed and I believe that more performances will arise and fill the streets with music

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Qn. How do you think the busker in the video is feeling? Why?

The busker might be feeling disappointed as the passers-by in the video do not look amused with the busker.

There is a busker juggling three clubs in the middle of the pathway. ithink this is happening on Orchard Road as I see many people walking around and I have personally seen many buskers situated around the different parts of Orchard Road.

This video was probably taken before COVID came about as I do not see anyone holding on to their masks or wearing them.

The passersby mainly consist of adults who do not seem too interested in what the busker is doing. The only people who actually stopped to take a look at the busker would be the children. They must be feeling amazed by how the busker managed to juggle three clubs.

If I was there, i would stay for awhile to show my interest in what the busker is doing and maybe even give him some of my loose change. This is because I don’t see him earning much from busking. I also sympathise with him as he is working hard to make a living from busking but people are walking past him without taking a second look.