"Speaking is part of a whole: an expression of inner life." Cicely Berry has based her work on the conviction that while all is present in nature our natural instincts have been crippled from birth by many processes--by the conditioning, in fact, of a warped society. So an actor needs precise exercise and clear understanding to liberate his hidden possibilities and to learn the hard task of being true to the 'instinct of the moment'. As her book points out with remarkable persuasiveness 'technique' as such is a myth, for there is no such thing as a correct voice. There is no right way--there are only a million wrong ways, which are wrong because they deny what would otherwise be affirmed. Wrong uses of the voice are those that constipate feeling, constrict activity, blunt expression, level out idiosyncrasy, generalize experience, coarsen intimacy. These blockages are multiple and are the results of acquired habits that have become part of the automatic vocal equipment; unnoticed and unknown, they stand between the actor's voice as it is and as it could be and they will not vanish by themselves. So the work is not how to do but how to permit: how, in fact, to set the voice free. And since life in the voice springs from emotion, drab and uninspiring technical exercises can never be sufficient. Cicely Berry never departs from the fundamental recognition that speaking is part of a whole: an expression of inner life.. After a voice session with her I have known actors speak not of the voice but of a growth in human relationships. This is a high tribute to work that is the opposite of specialization. Cicely Berry sees the voice teacher as involved in all of a theatre's work. She would never try to separate the sound of words from their living context. For her the two are inseparable. --from Peter Brook's foreword to Voice and the Actor
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From the Back Cover
"Speaking is part of a whole: an expression of inner life." Cicely Berry has based her work on the conviction that while all is present in nature our natural instincts have been crippled from birth by many processes—by the conditioning, in fact, of a warped society. So an actor needs precise exercise and clear understanding to liberate his hidden possibilities and to learn the hard task of being true to the ‘instinct of the moment’. As her book points out with remarkable persuasiveness ‘technique’ as such is a myth, for there is no such thing as a correct voice. There is no right way—there are only a million wrong ways, which are wrong because they deny what would otherwise be affirmed. Wrong uses of the voice are those that constipate feeling, constrict activity, blunt expression, level out idiosyncrasy, generalize experience, coarsen intimacy. These blockages are multiple and are the results of acquired habits that have become part of the automatic vocal equipment; unnoticed and unknown, they stand between the actor's voice as it is and as it could be and they will not vanish by themselves. So the work is not how to do but how to permit: how, in fact, to set the voice free. And since life in the voice springs from emotion, drab and uninspiring technical exercises can never be sufficient. Cicely Berry never departs from the fundamental recognition that speaking is part of a whole: an expression of inner life…. After a voice session with her I have known actors speak not of the voice but of a growth in human relationships. This is a high tribute to work that is the opposite of specialization. Cicely Berry sees the voice teacher as involved in all of a theatre's work. She would never try to separate the sound of words from their living context. For her the two are inseparable. —from Peter Brook's foreword to Voice and the Actor
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Voice and the Actor,
By E.M. Renraw (Kansas City, MO) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Voice and the Actor (Paperback)
A very informative book. Lots of good diction and breathing exercizes. I would definitely recommend this book to any actor who wants to do classical theatre, or just improve their vocal quality.
2 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing,
By Mike (Boston MA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Voice and the Actor (Paperback)
Much too verbose. The author is highly intelligent but highly verbose. Little useful information is presented.
0 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
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Voice of the Actor,
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The book came in new condition at less than half the retail price. Good people!
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
The most useful part of this book will certainly be the exercises, for it is the exercises that matter. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
emotional size, continuant consonants, diaphragm breath, teeth ridge, chest notes Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Dylan Thomas New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
The most useful part of this book will certainly be the exercises, for it is the exercises that matter. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
emotional size, continuant consonants, diaphragm breath, teeth ridge, chest notes Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Dylan Thomas New!
Books on Related Topics | Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
42
books
cite this book:
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- Shakespeare, Theory and Performance by James C. Bulman on 7 pages
- Shakespeare and Feminist Performance: Ideology on Stage (Accents on Shakespeare) by Sarah Werner on page 22, and page 24
- The Art of Voice Acting, Second Edition: The Craft and Business of Performing for Voice-Over by James Alburger on page 24, and page 44
- The Purpose of Playing: Modern Acting Theories in Perspective (Theater: Theory/Text/Performance) by Robert Gordon on page 174, and Back Matter
- Dickens, Novel Reading, and the Victorian Popular Theatre (Cambridge Studies in Nineteenth-Century Literature and Culture) by Deborah Vlock in Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
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