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Step 1
Clear your mind of any preconceptions that you have about what you are about to see or experience. This can be tough, but it's really the first step to trying anything new. How can you expect to enjoy it or get anything out of it if you have already decided how you feel about it?
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Step 2
Prepare to suspend your disbelief. Years of watching realistic movies or seeing artwork that mirrors real life might have made you skeptical about performance and art that defies logic, but it can be worthwhile and even life-changing if you embrace it. After all, there is no rule that says a painting must represent reality or that a play must present a slice of normal life.
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Step 3
Don't worry about what the people around you are saying or how they are reacting. Nobody else can tell you how to experience art. Just because the people standing next to you appear certain that a painting of a big brown blob represents a cow, doesn't make it so. And just because the rest of the audience is silent, doesn't mean that you can't laugh at something that strikes you as funny.
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Step 4
Be honest with yourself and don't be afraid to say how you feel about your experience. If you thought that experimental play was boring, then that's fine. But was there anything about it you liked? Was it kind of cool seeing a play that did something unexpected or different at times? Then maybe you would like to try experimental theater again sometime. And maybe most of the paintings at the modern art gallery looked like somebody threw up on a canvas, but was there a painting or a sculpture that you found particular moving or delightful? A piece that got you to think about art in a totally new way? You might want to seek out more work by that artist. Even if you got nothing out of the experience, at least it won't be for lack of trying!
