Description
Book SynopsisExperiencing Accents: A Knight-Thompson Speechwork Guide for Acting in Accent presents a comprehensive and systematic approach to accent acquisition for actors. It lays out an accessible and effective set of tools, exercises, and theoretical frameworks grounded in current linguistic science, as well as more than two decades of teaching, actor training, and coaching developed by Knight-Thompson Speechwork.
This book dismantles the notions that accents exist on a spectrum of good and bad or that neutral, general, or standard can serve as ideals for speech. By de-centering elitist and authoritarian worldviews, it gives actors a path to mobilize their innate language abilities to acquire any accent, relying on descriptive and experiential knowledge. The innovative approach of the Four Ps People, Prosody, Posture, and Pronunciation builds cultural competence that honors accents as they exist in the world, increases the physical and perceptive skills of the actor, and pro
Table of Contents
Teacher Introduction
Student Introduction
Preface
Part I: Foundations
Module 1: Orienting
Module 2: Unpacking
Module 3: The Four P’s
Part II: Exploring the Four P’s
Module 4: People - Asking Questions
Module 5: People - Doing Research
Module 6: Prosody - Listen and Sing
Module 7: Prosody - The Meaning of Music
Module 8: Posture - Listen with Your Mouth
Module 9: Posture - Speech as Movement
Module 10: Pronunciation – Categories
Module 11: Pronunciation - Particulars
Module 12: The Four P’s Combined
Part III: Performance and Play
Module 13: Accent Celebrations
Module 14: Embodied Practice
Module 15: Experiencing Play
