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Unit
One - Introduction to Drama
Module 2: Actor's Tools
Lesson 3 - Voice
| Voice
is the most underdeveloped of an actor's tools in our schools.
Listed here are a variety of voice activities and sample assignments
that you may choose from. The voice must be exercised regularly
to maintain flexibility, articulation,
clarity and range. While exercises should be used initially
to provide familiarity, they should also be used consistently
throughout the year as a component of the warm-up, and in
conjunction with both scripted and unscripted work. Good
voice work has three components: the body (relaxed, aligned,
ready), the breath (flowing free, supported) and the voice
(free, warm, well placed). |
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Key
Principals of Sound:
1. Sound should be pleasurable.
2. Sound is better with no tension because tension kills vibration.
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Activities:
Activity
1- Warming Up
A) Face crunches
• Make your faces as long and wide as possible for the
big face.
• Then crunch your faces as small as possible for the
tiny face.
• The teacher should call out each type of face and do
the faces with the class. Watching your teacher do this activity
is endlessly amusing and motivational. |
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B)
Tongue Circles
• Stretch your tongue out as far as you can.
• Try to make your tongue touch you chin, and then you
nose.
• Make large circles with your tongue outside your lips,
smaller ones outside your teeth, and tiny ones inside your
teeth. |
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C)
Sound exhalation
• As a group, practice proper breaths with good posture.
Breath should be drawn through the nose and exhaled through
the mouth. Count your students slowly through each breath,
for at least 5 breaths.
• Continue proper breathing, but now create consonant
sounds on the exhale.
• Allow the breath to slowly escape from the mouth
with sounds like "s-s-s-s" or "th-th-th-th".
• Breath should be dropping in and escaping out, not
forced or pushed.
This
improves breath
control and projection.
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View
Video on Resonators
6.81
KB
View
Video on Intonation
16.46
KB
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D)
Tongue twisters
Tongue twisters are common warm-ups for the voice. Use a wide
variety and target different sound combinations. Common choices
include the following: "She sells sea shells", "Betty
Botter bought some butter" and "Red leather, yellow
leather".
(10 min)
(Character Building by Colbourne and Ramsden pages
46-52 is an modern, accessible source of good vocal activities) |
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| Activity
2 - Assignments: |
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A.
Definitions:
Copy this PDF document and paste it into a word processor.
You type in the definitions from the glossary,
then create your own definitions. You may e-mail, fax or
give the definition sheet to the teacher.
Terms
Worksheet
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B.
Breathing Analysis:
View the video clip by Professor Pamela Haig-Bartley on
correct breathing.
View
Video Clip
28.48
KB
You
should work with partners who will observe your breathing
and posture. As you find errors, you each record your own
errors in a point form journal article and correct those
errors. When both partners have achieved correct breathing
and posture, the partnership is dissolved. Each person then
creates a personal step-by-step procedure for breathing
correctly.
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C.
Rhyme Recording:
You should be broken into groups of no larger than 5 by
the teacher. As groups, you read the assignment page and
follow the instructions to create your recordings. Recordings
may be handed as audio recordings e-mailed to the teacher,
or handed in as cassette recordings or compact disc recordings.
Nursery
Rhyme recording (45 min)
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Evaluation:
The
terms work sheet is out of 14. The nursery rhyme evaluation
out of 25, is marked on the evaluation sheet attached to
your assignment. You evaluate the poetry reading assignment.
The teacher formally evaluates the your self-analysis out
of 20, but not the project itself. Informal evaluation may
be attached to the project.
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