We’ve all seen it. Accents that make you want to cringe (apologies to poor Dick Van Dyke in Mary Poppins for using him as an example here). But how amazing it is when we are completely fooled! How glorious to be engaged with a character and story that uses a dialect to enhance the experience. How do the Meryl Streeps of the world do it?
continue readingExamining habits
“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” (Aristotle)
The way we speak is habitual. The concept of habit runs deeply through the work of voice and speech training. This is especially true in theatre, where the idea moves beyond speech into other elements affecting actors’ performance.
In this post, we are simply dipping a toe into the basics of habits: what they are, why we need them, and how to change them if we wish.
continue readingFifty blog posts on voice, speech, accents, and presence
I just learned that I have made 50 posts on this page over the past few years. These posts cover everything from “diaphragmatic” breathing to allergies to vocal health/injuries to projection to learning accents to hoarseness to owning a room. In case you missed any, here’s a complete list:
continue readingGo ahead and sigh… ahhhhhhhhh
Sighing is a fairly common tool in voice training. Let’s look at why that’s the case, and how it can help you.
continue readingWhy James Earl Jones’s voice was so great (and did you know he used to stutter?)
The legacy of James Earl Jones as an actor is tremendous, and he was universally beloved as a genuine mensch in real life. From Fences on Broadway to Roots on TV, from the iconic voices of Darth Vader and Mufasa on film to to the respected voice of CNN, one universal truth shone brightly:
That voice.
But what was it about that voice that made it s great? The answer might surprise you.
It’s not just about that deep resonance.
continue readingIs your ribcage too tight for free breath?
Many people know that the diaphragm is the primary muscle of inhalation. See my post, “Talking from the diaphragm” is BS for more details about this. But have you thought about the role your ribcage plays in breathing?
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