rehearsal
A rehearsal is the sacred ritual in which performers chew over their insecurities under the guise of practice. Artists willingly throw themselves into the inferno of repetition, at the mercy of directors and colleagues, rehearsing failures before the real failure. Audiences laud this pointless stretch of time in hopes of witnessing a miracle on opening night. In the end, a perfect rehearsal is a mere illusion, and chasing it only drags everyone deeper into the swamp of the actual performance. Backstage devotees endure this ordeal in the hope that one fewer mistake will ruin the show.