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The typical workshop is a small community in which all the participants have similar goals. Much can be accomplished in such an environment. The workshop leader and those assisting in the personal development curricula provide guidance and make each participant feel as safe as possible. One of the prices that's paid in such a situation is a lack of realism.

In a very real way Energy Theater provides a safe environment for self- understanding and exploration because a diversity of feelings and ideas can be expressed playfully, as a performance piece. Instead of being taken personally, you enjoy the performance for its entertainment value, as well as learning from the information it provides about energetic human nature. 

For some of us, expression in front of other people is difficult. It's an art form that has to be learned. In Energy Theater, if you feel you cannot act out some part of yourself because your own feelings will be too strong for you to deal with if they come to the surface, you can ask another group member to act out what they are picking up about you. For variety's sake,  each member in the group should be offered a chance to express their version of how they intuitively perceive you.

It takes a lot of understanding to let your emotional feelings animate your physical body. Often, people will verbally express one thing, while their body is physically expressing a very different feeling. For example, a person might say, "I feel wonderful inside!" and meanwhile their body is very stiff. (Physical stiffness means that your feelings are contained or controlled.) So to an observer, such a person may come across across as insincere or not very in touch with what they are talking about. This is not to discount the speaker's subjective experience, but it is a fact that you can have deep and profound feelings without allowing these feelings physical expression.  Ideally, we want our living energy to enliven our body through motion. Emotions-becoming-motions should be a natural part of your experience.