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Drew Patti

Acting Techniques I
Professor McDonald
November 19, 2016
My Voice
Within the three months that Ive been at Wagner, Ive learned so much about myself and
my career path. Even though Ive only had one semesters worth of knowledge, I feel as though
Ive grown tremendously as an actor. Starting the semester off with Susans module I found
myself challenged in being able to be spontaneous and impulsive. During this module I found
myself even more challenged but in an entirely different way; producing organic sound from my
body. However, with the resources Ive learned in this module Im finally beginning to find my
true, inner voice through Destructuring, Restructuring, text ownership, and resonation concepts
and exercises.
The most difficult part of this module for me has been allowing myself to feel what I was
feeling at the time. During the Destructuring exercises I found myself struggling to release the
tension I was building up. With tremoring exercises, I become very emotional and then psych
myself out and try to repress those feelings again because Im afraid of releasing how I feel. Joan
Melton explains the overall outcome perfectly in One Voice as well as what you want to avoid
while doing tremor exercises. When Melton speaks about the tremor not being a conscious
shaking but rather it tapping into an action the body knows deeply (Melton pg. 12), I know
Im doing the exercise efficiently but I refuse the outcome.
Of course, you dont only do Destructuring exercises, you need to combine it with
Restructuring exercises. The most prominent idea involved with Restructuring is the use of the

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transversus abdominus rather than using rib reserve. The four-point-breathing exercise is the
most beneficial way for me to incorporate this idea because of the decreased demand on the ribs
and the ability to maintain an elongated posture. A trust in his right to pause, or to breathe in
when he has a new thought, (Breathing is Meaning) is essential for an actor.
Using Restructuring concepts, text ownership is completely dependent on how you
breathe. A quote that really strikes me with this idea is in Patsy Rodenburgs, The Actor Speaks,
when an older actor told Patsy that I dont go to the theatre to see how people speak, I go to
hear what they have to say. I can relate to this comment because in shows that Ive seen I could
care less for the character who sounded like they had to portray a certain emotion with how they
spoke, but the character that spoke about how they felt naturally was always my favorite; I call
the former actor in the example an over-actor. As stated in the section about Restructuring, it is
essential for the actor to trust in his/her right to pause or to breathe because in doing this the
actor can speak organically and is able to portray how they feel in a more raw, focused approach.
A concept that has dramatically changed my voice is the use of resonation and
articulation to speak truthfully, naturally, and fully. The pummel and hum exercise is the most
beneficial for me because not only does it warm my body up, which is required in order for your
voice to be used to its fullest potential since the voice is an action with no location in the
body except when it is in action, sounding (Breathing is Meaning), but it also allows my
entire body to resonate sound. For clarity, I would say that the conduction aspect of resonation
helps warm up my body, while the actual vocalized part of the exercise allows my body to
resonate entirely.
The end goal of all these exercises and concepts is that voice work becomes
indistinguishable from acting. I feel that as actors, and as humans, we are always learning and

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craving knowledge so we may never reach the point where we are the perfect actor, but these
ideas can help distinguish us as great actors as opposed to good actors. I find that its more
important to relay the message to the audience in an effective, personal way, rather than in an
entertaining way. Though entertainment is a key factor in popularity in most shows, the shows
that have actors speaking truthfully I find the most compelling. While continuing my studies as
an actor, I will continue to incorporate Destructuring, Restructuring, text ownership, and
resonation concepts and exercises in my training.

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