THTR 339 Vocal Characterization
This one-semester technique class builds on the knowledge gained in Voice and Speech for the Actor (THTR 202 and 203) to help students will develop skills in analyzing phonation, resonance, articulation, intonation patterns, and phonetic shifts through a variety of explorations and exercises. Students will apply these skills to a series of vocal transformation projects where they will study someone's voice, oral posture, and patterns of speech, then both improvise and perform a monologue as that person. Students will begin to build characters by analyzing how specific vocal tract actions are perceived by others, and combine them in a way that can be justified by the character’s psychology. Readings will be drawn from both technical vocal science, as well as sociolinguistic texts to explore not only the anatomy and physiology of the voice, but also how identity and biases are inherently tied to voice. This will encourage development of empathy as they create characters who are vocally much different from themselves. Additional lab fee applies.
Prerequisite
Completion of
THTR 202-203 with a grade of “B” or better in each semester