Hey Reader,
The Thing Narration (Instead of Performance) Does
There's a version of Audio Description that explains everything.
It’s voice tells you what happened. It tells you what to feel. It tells you over silences because silence feels like failure.
That version doesn't trust you.
I used to do something similar in my own life. When I didn't know how something would turn out, I'd start running scenarios. If this happens, I'll say that. If they say no, I'll pivot here. I'd build elaborate contingency maps, all to avoid the one thing I was actually afraid of: not being in control of what happened next.
It looked like preparation. But it was really me building this elaborate map with paths to and from all my fears.
Here's what I've learned, and not without some collateral damage along the way (ask my exes, or a few former clients where I made assumptions or crossed a line I wasn't paying attention to):
The moment I try to control answers to the questions, I stop serving the conversation.
Or, in Audio Description, the moment I try to control the story, I stop serving the story.
The Words “Because“ And “Sorry” And “Well,” Are Some Great Litmus Tests.
There's a pattern in myself and in performers. It’s called J.A.D.E.:
Justify,
Apologize,
Defend,
Explain.
Watch how it sounds:
"I did this because I didn't have any other choice." That's justifying.
"I'm sorry, I did this." That's apologizing when the situation doesn't actually call for it.
"Well, I had to because..." That's defending -- justification with a well in front of it.
And explain? Explain is when the other person's eyes glaze over and you're still talking. You've given them three times more than they needed, and somewhere in there you lost them.
All four roads lead to the same place: you trying to manage what someone else thinks of you.
The solution I keep coming back to is practicing a true “no” as a complete sentence. Not "no, because..." Not "no, but I want you to understand..."
Just no.
And then, like staying in a cold plunge pool, letting it sit there, without trying to make it land differently, control how it's received, or smooth over the discomfort of being misunderstood.
On the flip side, it’s genuinely asking for something, with curiosity, and being open to whatever the answer is. Risking the disappointment.
That is genuinely hard. And genuinely worth practicing.
Stuck in the J.A.D.E.
When an Audio Description Performer is stuck in J.A.D.E., you hear it. The performance becomes more urgent than the scene calls for. More meaningful than the moment actually is. It starts to pander a little -- talking down to the listener, as if they can't be trusted to feel what's already there.
It's the performance excusing itself. Explaining itself. Trying to make sure you got it.
And the audience feels that. Not consciously, maybe. But something closes off. The trust breaks a little.
What's The Fix?
A version that works comes from curiosity. From asking "So what is this scene actually doing?" without already knowing the answer. From trusting that if you align with what's true in the story, the listener will meet you there.
"No" as a complete sentence, and Audio Description as a complete performance, are the same thing, really: both ask you to say what's true and let it land without managing the response.
And think about how this anti-JADE movement can come to life: from a place of curiosity, asking questions, without expectations of any results.
I love the application of this in real life, and I’m enjoying the experiences that are opening up because of it. Asking for what I want without fretting about the consequences. Allowing others to respond however they need to, without forcing anything.
And on the Audio Description Performance side, I’m seeing and feeling it there, too.
There's a space I've built for performers who want to work from this place of curiosity, without the pressure; where scripts meet picture, where music and dialogue shape what a performance can actually be, where you get to play without presenting for approval.
If someone you know has been searching for that kind of space, feel free to share this with them. The right people tend to find it through someone who gets it.
That's the Playback Lounge.
And this Wednesday, May 20th, if you want a 90 minute test run inside this approach with me directly, check out the workshop at navavoices.org/classes.