The Myth of Talent
It’s a typical story. If you’re familiar with any talent show,
you know it well. Young dreamer waiting her whole life for
a shot at the big time leaves home in search of an
opportunity. When she gets the chance, she steps into the
spotlight and proceeds to completely bomb, all in front of a
live audience. It’s painful but entertaining to watch, and we
all feel a slight twinge of guilt for amusing ourselves at
someone else’s expense.
The most painful part, though, is the fight that often
ensues after the rejection. The judges tell the talent she
doesn’t have what it takes, and she protests: “I don’t
understand . . . I’ve been practicing my whole life . . . I
hired a vocal coach . . . This is my dream . . . Everyone says
I can sing . . .” On one show, I saw a middle-aged man who
was voted off proceed to disagree with the judges, saying he
had been practicing with a choreographer for three hours a
night, and they simply didn’t know what they were talking
about.
We know the tale well. It’s the stuff prime-time
entertainment is made of. But what about when the opposite
happens—when an unknown person takes the stage and,
much to the amazement of the critics, blows everyone
away?
That’s what Susan Boyle did when she appeared on
Britain’s Got Talent in 2009. A middle-aged woman with a