Module Information

Recent changes in the TFTS curriculum have resulted in a wider range of physically focused practice modules being offered but it has been recognised that the curriculum currently should offer the equivalent opportunity for students to develop very important voice skills which many areas of performance require. In an increasingly competitive field, these communication skills are vital and, for those who expect to work within the industry, an understanding of this area of practice and the ability to use the voice imaginatively and safely is vital. In addition, such skills greatly enhance general employability for graduates wishing to transfer skills acquired in their degree to fields outside of theatre and performance.

The voice within performance is a developing area of research and one in which there are new opportunities for interdisciplinary approaches: for example in the fields of archaelogy, neuroscience, visual arts or ethnomusicology. Students who hope to enter the professional theatre as directors or actors, those who aspire to creating their own performance company, as well as those who hope to study practice at post graduate level, need to have a basic understanding of a range of vocal techniques and to have practised and mastered at least some of those.

A significant number of students from TFTS apply for MA or MFA courses in theatre and performance practice (at institutions elsewhere) following their undergraduate studies here. Such places are limited and it is a very competitive field. Many of these courses can only be accessed via audition and the vocal skills this module aims to develop is absolutely essential if our students are to increase their chances of being offered places on such postgraduate courses.

The lectures and seminars will introduce students to a brief history of voice in performance as well as to the key influences in current voice practice. The voice in performance will be considered within the context of history, culture and gender. The content will be as follows:

1. How the voice is produced; preserving the voice from damage; postural awareness and adjustment; creating a neutral (un-habitual), safe basis for voice work; the influence of F.M Alexander.

2. Developing breathing techniques appropriate for performance work including the connection of breath with emotion and expression through awareness of the psycho-physical basis of performance and particularly the influence of the psyche on voice production; the work of Alfred Wolfsohn, Roy Hart.

3. Resonance and projection; the importance of physical preparation in the work of Zygmunt Molik with Jerzy Grotowski; the concept and practice of vocal 'Life'.

4. The co-ordination of movement, breath and sound in speaking and singing; rhythm; work-songs; performance using the full vocal range. Key practitioners might include: the choreographic vocal work of Meredith Monk; Gardzienice Theatre Association; Theatre Zar; Chorea.

5. Shaping sound: adjusting the muscles of the mouth, throat, lips; the role of vowels and consonants; somatic and experiential understanding and performance of text: Kristin Linklater's methodology.

6. Working on text: imagination and vocal expression; connecting to language; exploring pitch, volume, intonation, inflection, emphasis: examples from Barbara Houseman.

7. The voice and rhythmic structure: working with the demands of verse and the architecture of complex poetic language structures; Cicely Berry and the RSC; David Carey; Patsy Rodenburg; Kristin Linklater.

8. Finding the character's voice; considerations of dialect, accent, age and gender; creating character from voice work. Examples might include performances of Anna Deveare-Smith.

9. Creating performance work focused on the voice; voice in site specific work; landscape and voice; traditional voice techniques in a geographical context e.g. harmonics and overtone singing from Tuva and Mongolia; Georgian table song.

10. Vocal performance work: working with found text; vocal concepts; past and future vocal experiments: examples might include Jean Tardieu, Artaud, Enrique Pardo; Yvon Bonenfant.

This level two module will introduce students to current voice practice within the field of theatre and performance and will offer an understanding of: how the vocal mechanism works; how to develop vocal range and flexibility safely; a range of different approaches to voice development as manifest in the work of key practitioners and from a range of cultures from around the world; current trends and areas of research.

Each session will begin with lecture/seminar which will develop an understanding of how the vocal mechanism works as well as introducing and analyzing a range of voice techniques from the work of key practitioners. The lectures/seminars together with reading and research tasks will encourage the students to explore the performer's voice within an historical, cultural and gender context. This will be followed by a two hour class which will introduce practical voice exercises and encourage the evaluation of these techniques when applied to a range of performance material including found texts, play texts, improvised works and songs.