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Accents and Dialects of the British Isles, TWO SESSION MASTER CLASS

  • Hashtag Comedy's Learning Center at The Fort 2000 South High Street Columbus, OH, 43207 United States (map)

Class Length: 2 Sessions

Time/Dates: 2pm-5pm, Saturday 7/20 and Sunday 7/21

Registration: $97

Pre-requisites: Foundations for Speaking Accents, or previous stage or acting experience. Please message with questions.

Ever wanted to know how to speak in an accent? Think you have your Sean Connery down, but would like to speak a passable Cockney?

Whether you're a performer, entertainer or TV, film or stage actor, Accents and Dialects of the British Isles is a six hour master class (spread over two sessions) that will teach you what you need to know to speak these accents and apply them to scripted (or improvised) work.

Key Course Takeaways

Participants will have the chance to explore a range of iconic dialects spoken by our neighbors from across the pond! By the end of this class, students will learn the foundations to multiple dialects - ranging from Cockney and Standard British (think like the Royal Family), to Irish and Scottish. Over the two weekends of instruction, students will learn skills for efficiently analysing and acquiring a new dialect quickly, as well as get ample chances to improv and act using these new vocal skills.

Class Highlights

  • Acting in accent (it's not enough to just speak the accent...can you perform scripted work in it?)

  • Exploring character through voice and speech (learn how to inform your character through how they speak)

  • Skill building for working actor (a great course addition to resumes!)

Class Structure

Week One (6/22) will focus on building the right tools to explore and speak these accents. Before the end of class, students will be assigned homework (which may include monologues or scripted scenes) to practice and present in Week Two (6/29). Students will be given focused feedback and coaching in Week Two to help refine and hone their new skill.

Please note, this master class will run like a traditional theater or acting class, meaning that students must participate in exercises that require exploring breath, body movement and vocalization. It is NOT a comedy or improv class (though students may recognize exericses from these types of classes, and improvisation principles can help with learning new accents). Students should dress with the expectation to move and be willing to explore different facets of breath support and sound.

Pre-requisites: Foundations for Speaking Accents, equivalent stage or acting experience. Please message with questions.

Space is limited for this master class, so register soon!

ABOUT YOUR INSTRUCTOR

Colton Weiss is a Columbus theatre native and proud graduate from the American Repertory Theater Institute at Harvard University. He works as a freelance artist and is happy to be teaching again with #Hashtag Comedy Columbus! Recent coaching credits: Disney’s Newsies (Gallery Players, Ryan Scarlata, dir.) Venus in Fur (Columbus Civic, Megan Mateer, dir.). Upcoming projects: Matilda the Musical, Billy Elliot (Weathervane Playhouse), Someone Who’ll Watch Over Me (Columbus Civic). Like his FB page (Colton Weiss - Voice, Speech & Dialect Coach) and visit coltonweiss.com.