Voice and Speech Class - Voice Class 04

Raife Baker teaches Voice and Speech classes for actors at the Maggie Flanigan Studio in New York City. These are images of Raife in class discussing the importance of the Meisner technique and dialects. It can be easy to undersell the value of working on accents and dialects. Dialects specifically. As actors we spent a lot of time figuring out exactly what we are looking for in a scene or exactly how we want to approach a scene partner. It can be easy to forget the things that make up a character; where they are from, how old they are, what year it is, how their childhood went, all of these things create the way that we simply pronounce words and the way that we express thoughts. The way that we seek our needs and wants. So thinking about dialects in service to acting, I think it is a very important thing to approach. Looking at it phonetically is the best and most specific way to look at it. There is an entire alphabet of sounds that is its own language. Looking at the way that people create each of those sounds, differently, depending on all of those factors, can highlight what makes a character specifically different so that every performance that you give as an actor will be a unique, specific performance. Maggie Flanigan Studio 153 W 27th St #803 New York, New York 10001 +1 917-789-1599 www.maggieflaniganstudio.com/ goo.gl/maps/oxqqExybwL32 plus.google.com/100897218937179347163 http://flic.kr/p/TNXGr1