Spellbound, she peeked beyond the curtain.
The audience was full.
She could not remember her opening lines
and now there came a lull.
The time had arrived for her grand debut.
Where had her words all gone?
She'd rehearsed them over and over again
and now the curtain was drawn.

The lights were shining upon her face
and the audience was devoid of noise.
She closed her eyes for a second
and became the picture of poise.
One by one the words unfolded
and she became the character she played.
By the time the first act ended
her nervousness all did fade.

She was born for this and nothing else.
The stage became her throne.
For years she portrayed each heroine.
The world was all her own.
But some years later a younger one
was ready for her debut.
So she sadly stepped out of the limelight
and wondered 'Now what will I do? '

Edwina Reizer

http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/the-actress-4/