26 January 2013

Miss Pronunciation XVIII

Miss Pronunciation's Pants on Fire

Now, I only heard this once, and it was from M. Pronunciation, my significant other of ESL stock, but it did make me giggle - so I share it with you as the first Miss Pronunciation of 2013.

The topic matter is now lost in the mists of time, but at one point he came out with "Yes, but he was just a flash in the pants".

I giggled. Hard.

Not in a mocking way. In a "did you just say one of the funniest things ever?" way.

It's a flash in the PAN.

The origin is a topic of debate - was it the flash of gold in a pan that suggested there may be riches, but turned out to be just another hunk o' rock; or was it the gunpowder that ignited when lit, but the bullet never fired?

Anyhoo......I like the idea of a "flash in the pants", and I'm adopting the mispronunciation into my vernacular.





22 January 2013

Use your Voice training to Give Others a Voice

Are you an acting student? You want to donate to an excellent cause but don't have the cash for that and voice lessons?


oun-srey
Photo & Story: Oun Srey
In mid-2012 Love Voice trialed the idea of one student-discount session per week for $45 where all proceeds go to HAGAR International: a brilliant charity that assists victims of human trafficking in getting their lives back on track.

Love Voice is making a firm commitment to run this program throughout 2013. If you are interested in this session (you may take the opportunity once per calendar month) we are getting underway from this week.
 

21 January 2013

Start Your Year On Top.

Those of you who study with me know my philosophy: if your body is telling you to take a break, you obviously need one.

However......

Have a look at the calendar: it’s nearly February. Had a good time in the sun? A great break with the family? Hopefully your Christmas was as decadent as mine......

It can take only a week for your vocal conditioning to decrease if you're not using it in rehearsal/performance/workout mode every day or so. The memory of it is still there, but you might have formed new pathways, different patterns over your break.

It’s time to get back on the horse.

Where to start? Here’s a few hints (in no particular order):

* Some daily semi-supine and a listen to your breath to re-engage.

* Some good sirening to really get those neglected pitches at either end of the spectrum back into working order (remember - if you don’t use it, you lose it).

* Some good rib stretches to make room for movement....or some yoga.

* Get your articulators back on track with some good muscular work.

 * Grab a great voice book from the library or local bookshop and work through it from the most basic exercises. I’d suggest Patsy Rodenberg ‘The Actor Speaks’, Kristen Linklater ‘Freeing the Natural Voice’ or (for great muscularity) Michael McCallion ‘The Voice Book’. This will allow you to really work at your own pace.

If you’re feeling particularly uninspired, meet with a friend every couple of days for a good voice workout.

Take note - don’t beat up on yourself if you’re not able to achieve what you could in November or December. Just keep engaging with your voice work daily, and the results will start to show. Note that it might take a couple of weeks of dedication.....but don’t leave it until a day before an audition or your return to drama school!



1 January 2013

Voice Resolution

Time and space - some of the most useful things an artist can have - why do we then want to strip these ingredients from our art?

I’m sick of this masterchef-work-against-the-clock-tick-tick-tick-choc-it-in-crank-it-out format that is currently being  applied to anything creative. If theatre is really about exploration, how can we possibly be putting impossible time limits on it and expecting good things to happen?

Recently, our company Present Tense staged a show about Margaret Fulton. The lady herself  came to see it and I was struck by her opening night speech. She talked about food, and how the act of making a good meal is really an act of love. She also (and I’m wildly misquoting her here) talked about how anyone wielding a knife these days thinks him(her)self a chef.

This made me understand why I reject these cook against the clock spectacles in any given genre - the love is taken out of the work, it becomes a mere prostitution of that act of love. The result may be tasty, but empty.

I have witnessed this in the theatre - it is becoming increasingly prominent - five shows in five weeks from scratch (at least the old traveling companies had standard sets of revisited pieces), two week rehearsal periods (don’t worry, the spectacular costumes will make up for any downfall), blue print productions that expect an entire cast to gel, open and explore  a mediocre text in which they have no input.

Yes, we’re all running to a clock, yes, we need to produce product by a certain date, but are we missing the point? Slowly stew the product, give me a small taste of it, and then take it away to add some more ingredients, let me experience the simmering of the work, the rising of the dough, and I will happily pay again to further not only the artists’ exploration, but my own. Don’t try for the finished product every time - sometimes the cake batter tastes better than the cake......

And this feeds directly into our voice work. Take it slow, see what emerges instead of trying to mould the voice, explore and be fascinated by its flaws and ugliness, as well as its charm (quite often the latter lies in the two former). 

I was asked the other night about any resolutions for my new 2013. I didn’t realise it was a resolution until I said it out loud. I’m working on a slow simmer this year - and don't try to hurry me - I'm not that kind of gal.

What's your voice resolution for 2013?