When has art changed you?

From a dear friend on Facebook:

I mean really changed you.

Hopefully it frequently moves you all the time — the painting that makes you laugh, the music that makes you smile, the movie that makes you outraged, the book that makes you cry — but I'm interested in the times that art has really changed the way you think about the world, or motivated you to go and give money to a charity, or made you change the way you live your life.

When my friend invited me to watch a show he'd directed - The UNSW Med Revue in 2002 - it was the catalyst for me moving to Sydney in 2003. Without having seen that show, I may still be living in Newcastle, working in an IT department.

Performing in the movement piece LIst in 2007 made me realise that I might like to spend a lot of my career working on shows with little to no dialogue.

A video of a Madonna concert (along with research a friend of mine did on South Africa) has led to a change in the way I buy things everyday, and given me a thesis topic!

Two out of three of these realisations have only changed my life because theatre is my career. So can I necessarily say that those moments would have been so profound if theatre wasn't what I do every day?

So, those of you for whom art isn't your life, when has it changed your life?

My reply:

Looking for Alibrandi made me realise I wasn't alone.

Miss Saigon, The Sound of Music and Sister Act 2 made me want to sing.

Numerous books by authors such as Murray Bail and Arundhati Roy etc etc made me want to write.

RENT made me fall in love with New York.

A Midsummer Night's Dream directed by Tim Supple made me think about the true physicality of Shakespeare's text.

Tambours sur la Digue by Theatre Du Soleil introduced me to the power and originality of physical theatre.

A Disappearing Number by Complicite reinforced my love for maths and play.

Stoning Mary made me believe in the quality and value of independent theatre.

Heartbreak High convinced me that an Asian chick could be on screen and kill it!

TV convinced me that the minutiae of people's lives could be moving and addictive.

Batman Begins made me believe that I could wear a batsuit and save Gotham city, all while maintaining monopoly of most of the financial market ;)

Hehe.