Stage speech is a compulsory discipline in the training programs of orators, entertainers, theater and movie actors, announcers, sports commentators, and other professionals related to public speaking. The voice and speech of an artist is a flexible, multifunctional tool that serves him or her for both informative and expressive purposes. Stage speech exercises on diction help improve the sound of the voice and make it pleasant for the audience.
The minimum requirements for an artist’s speech:
Speech must be loud, correct, and intelligible: even a whisper from the stage must be heard and understood on the last row of the amphitheater.
The voice must be strong, voluminous, and vivid. Often the range of the actor’s voice corresponds to the range of the vocalist. Colorless monotone speech is poorly perceived by the audience.
The actor must master the technique of correct breathing, which allows you to speak loudly, and even shout, without tearing the ligaments. Skilled artists do not break the voice, even with prolonged strain.
Unfortunately, the talents of God in this area there is no talent at all, except for a pleasant timbre of voice. Everything else is achieved by daily practice and regular practice. Most artists start their mornings with articulation and breathing exercises, many of them have a useful habit of reading aloud for a long time.
Those who are just about to take their first steps toward mastering stage speech have two priorities:
Strengthening and developing the speech apparatus.
Assessing speech deficiencies and selecting exercises to correct them.
To understand exactly what problems are inherent in your speech, read out a small prose passage on a tape recorder. Prepare for the fact that what you hear will not make you happy. Most people can’t stand the sound of their voice on tape. In addition, all the flaws in diction that you used to ignore in everyday life are audible and noticeable.
It’s important to deal with that first disappointment: you’re starting from scratch, imperfect speech is normal. People are not born with perfect diction, all the greatest artists and orators have gone through the process of speech production.
Very often the unintelligible pronunciation of individual sounds is due to weakness of the muscles of the articulation system and facial muscles, the so-called “lazy” articulation.
Impeccable diction is like posture: it is impossible to slouch in everyday life and be slender at a ball or at a party. To be slim, you have to watch yourself every minute and not allow yourself to relax. The same applies to speech: if in everyday communication you allow yourself negligence, over time, they will steadily grow into speech flaws.
