Do It Again: The Magic of Repetition

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“Next time you’re afraid to share your ideas, remember someone once said in a meeting let’s make a movie with a tornado full of sharks.” – unknown

This post was originally published on 8/9/2023. Heads up – you may have already read this.

I was recently lucky enough to be able to talk about the magic of theater in a podcast conversation with writer, playwright, and Wise & Shine colleague, Jack Canfora. As we talked about the powerful feeling of a night in the theater when it all comes together and just works, he told me a story about Laurence Olivier and young Maggie Smith.

After a night where the performance was particularly magical, Laurence Olivier angrily stormed into his dressing room. Maggie Smith inquired after him, asking him “What’s the matter, Larry? It was brilliant.” Laurence replied, “I know. And I have absolutely no idea how I did it, and it’ll be gone tomorrow.”

Wow, that story speaks to me! About how I want to capture magic, to define it, and put it into a bottle. Also about the repetitive nature of life. Preparing a meal, writing a post, or having a moment with friends – there are so many things that I do repeatedly and when it goes well, want to know why. Laurence Olivier’s reply gets to the desire to capture it in a formula so that we know exactly how to do it again.

The elusive nature of life seems to ensure that there is no perfect replica. Even for someone with the talent of a great actor cannot control all the factors that go into a delivery.  Yet we still strive for those wonderful moments when it all comes together.

If you’re anything like me, that striving actually takes away from the moment. Instead of savoring the now moment, when everything went wonderfully well, and being grateful, I start thinking of what I have to do next, or how things might go differently in the future.

Fortunately, I keep getting the chance to do it again. I’ve found that life requires us to repeat ourselves and then begs us to stay present for each show. I feel this most starkly when it comes to writing. Every time I sit down to write, it feels like breaking through my barrier of protectiveness and layers of my own BS to try to write something meaningful. Then I post something, for better or for worse, and then think, “I’ve got to do that again?”

Of course I do, because life isn’t static. I’ve found that writing rubs off that tarnish or moss that grows when I don’t do the work to show up authentically. For me, that’s where the magic happens. I can only imagine that something similar was at work for Laurence Olivier.

(featured photo from Pexels)

38 thoughts on “Do It Again: The Magic of Repetition”

    1. Keep at it — love how you’ve put it, dear Vicki! I think it might be all creative types – and maybe all stages. Daunting but with encouragement – manageable. Right?

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  2. This is so interesting. I don’t think I’ve ever felt that way, except maybe mild surprise when something worked better than I expected. I wonder if there’s something wrong with me or maybe I used to have such feelings but am now too old to remember! 😏😂 I’ll have to give this further thought!!

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  3. We’re always chasing those magic moments, but then we get caught up in thinking about the next thing. Can’t we just enjoy the now for once?! But I guess that’s what makes life so special, the unknowns, the repeats, and the chance to show up real every time. Your writing is so on point.

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  6. Yes, I love the idea of being able to bottle up magic. It also reminds me of my kids’ years in swimming. They’d practice six days a week, sometimes doubles. The coaches would tell them to not think in races at meets, they’d already done the thinking. Let their bodies take over and swim.

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  8. There really is a fine line between cherishing wins capturing lessons from our success and relinquishing a bit of control and accepting that our best effort may not always be perfect. So many great thoughts here, Wynne.

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  9. I suppose it’s the number of variables in a complex set of circumstances that make it difficult to repeat. For that performance by Olivier the success was surely influenced by a responsive audience that night, the way his brain was able to keep track of every line, every action, every nuance of facial expression, the way the other actors interacted with one another and with him, etc., etc. We spoil the joy of the moment when we start contemplating the what-ifs of tomorrow. Jesus warned against exactly that (Matthew 6:34).

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    1. What an insightful collection factors that go into that perfect performance, Nancy! Yes, we do ruin the moment when we get ahead of ourselves, don’t we? We just need to let tomorrow come with its own things! Thanks for the great comment.

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  10. I love re-reading this post. A lot of success comes from practice and repetition is part of practice. There is no perfect replica in life but many moments to find magic again and again.

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  11. “Every time I sit down to write, it feels like breaking through my barrier of protectiveness and layers of my own BS to try to write something meaningful. Then I post something, for better or for worse, and then think, “I’ve got to do that again?””, this is awesome, Wynne.

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  12. Quite so, when we try to create a magical moment it doesn’t work as we want, because we’re often trying too hard. Magic happens when we release the expectations and just allow ourselves to flow deeply into the moment!

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  13. Another gem of a blog post 🙂 Indeed, it’s a great lesson to savor the moments when magic blooms. Certainly it’s frustrating when those times don’t happen often — all the better reason to put more energy into savoring when they do!

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  16. I would say, “Sure, Larry [though I’d never call him Larry], that performance will be gone tomorrow. And in its place will spring a far superior one, because a master is always improving his craft.”

    Then I hope he’d buy me a beer or something, because that’s a pretty nice ego boost if I do say so myself.

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