As one of the world's leading voice coaches, Patsy Rodenburg describes practical ways to approach language, using Shakespeare, Romantic poetry, modern prose and a range of other texts to help each of us discover our own unique need for words.
In Part One Rodenburg attacks the myth that there is only one correct way to speak by clearing away the blocks that can make language inaccessible. Part Two, a series of language and text exercises, connects the voice to the shape and quality of individual words and phrases.
Drawing on Rodenburg's time spent coaching in the worlds of business and politics, this edition reflects on how the way we use words has changed since the book was first published. It brings a renewed focus on the language of power, spoken in the worlds of politicians and company directors. This gives readers an insight into the potency of clear, direct communication. Language and text exercises provide readers with unmediated access to this new research, allowing them to practice and master the language and words that drive the modern world.
Foreword by Anthony Sher.
Author(s): Patsy Rodenburg
Series: Bloomsbury Revelations
Edition: 2
Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic
Year: 2023
Language: English
Pages: 246
City: London
Half Title
Series Page
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Contents
About the Author
Acknowledgements
Foreword
Introduction
Let’s Consider Shakespeare!
Part I: The Need for Words
Chapter 1: Connecting with Words
The Speaking Act
Distrust of Words
Returning to Words
In the Beginning was the Word
The Power of Words
The Importance of Oracy
The Deeper Need for Words
Lost Voices
Not Empty Rhetoric
Native Eloquence
Words Are Physical
Chapter 2: The Breakdown of Words
Family
Education
Conservation
The Written Word vs the Spoken Word
Speaking Your Way into Writing and Reading
Discussion and Debate
Training Young Actors
Guarding Against Quick Fixes
Chapter 3: Cultural and Physical Barriers
The Age of Cacophony and Image Saturation
Embodiment
Role Models
Speaking in Public
The Inability to Listen
Tensions and Physical Habits as Barriers
Poetry
Profanity
Language of Gestures
Wit and Wordplay
Irony and Satire
The Tyranny of the Intellectual
Codes and Code Breaking
The Media and Tabloid Thinking
Solipsism
Advertising
Power Talk or Don’t Talk Back
The Passion-Mongers
Sentimentality
Fillers and Clichés
Sexual Politics
Political Correctness
RP or Not RP
RP is a Choice
Overcoming the Speech Barrier
Part II: Voice and the Text
Chapter 4: Finding a Voice
Releasing Physical Barriers
Getting ‘In Voice’
Focal Points
Simple Voice Workout
Chapter 5: Voice into Words and Text
Connecting to a Text
Experimenting with Language
Sounding Real
Language Exercises
Chapter 6: Working Further with Texts
The Marriage between Voice and Text
Clues from the Great Writers
The Poetry Barrier
The Structure of Verse
The Way Words Work
Starting with Shakespeare
Speaking Shakespeare’s Text
Sonnets
Shakespeare’s Speeches
Shakespearean Prose
The Verse Duet
Medieval Verse
Christopher Marlowe
John Milton
Jacobean Drama
A Modern Jacobean Equivalent
The Age of Pope and the Age of Reason
Restoration Dialogue
Oscar Wilde
George Bernard Shaw
Styles in Speaking Texts
Greek Tragedy
Edward Bond
William Blake
Samuel Beckett
Harold Pinter
Working with Song Lyrics
Bad Texts
Prologues and Epilogues
Copyright and Permissions Acknowledgements
Index
