These Are Getting Worse, Acting Voice

Ok here's essay 6 which means i have just past half way on the Mini essays
Im thinking im going to stop with them now, and begin gathering notes for my film essay which must be 1500 words, then a power nap, then back to the mini essays, then finish with some more film



An actor’s voice is as important as an actor’s body. As Barranger puts it, “The voice is our means of communicating to others, presenting ourselves, expressing our personality, thoughts, and feelings.” There is a need for us to speak and communicate. For actors that need is rooted in conveying a story, and defining a character.

The hard part of conveying character through voice is the practicality of theatre, as Cohen puts it “You must live the life of your character, but also be heard in the back row.” Actors must be able to whisper so that it sounds like a whisper but is also able to be heard by the audience. Volume is only part of the challenge, because even if you’re heard, you still have to create that believable connection between you’re character and the audience because “Unlike the singer whose ‘sound’ is the message, the actor’s voice is an extension of a person” says Barranger. The accent must be correct, If an actor is suppose to be Italian, but he sounds like Michael Caine, the audience wont believe him. If you’re actor is suppose to be energetic and bouncing around, but the voice sounds depressed, then the audience wont connect with the character.

Barranger describes modern voice training as “Open[ing] up the possibilities of the voice-its energy, its instinctive responses to what the actor has to say.” The point of voice training is to open up the different kinds of characters for the actor to choose from. It is important that the actor learn to combine both physical body movement, and voice to accurately portray the emotions and complexities involved the the character.

An actor’s voice is a tool of communication, just like the actor’s body. Different tones can denote different emotions, and or meanings to the speech. When combined with the body, the actor now has two effective tools, from which he can communicate a character with depth, and complexity.