Open Forum

 View Only

  • 1.  Dialect and Race

    Posted 10-01-2018 09:30
    I'm trying to help Theatre I students break stereotypes and be sensitive to the features of racial dialects and differences without being offensive. The discussion came up today and it was a bit sticky. We're studying Voice and Articulation and all its features. Does anyone have any techniques, lessons, or ideas that can help me explore this with students in an open and accepting way?

    --
    Darren McGarvey
    IB Coordinator
    937-499-1662
    English/Theater Teacher
    937-499-2460
    Kettering Fairmont High School
    darren.mcgarvey@ketteringschools.org


  • 2.  RE: Dialect and Race

    Posted 10-02-2018 08:05
    When I learned dialects in college, we just studied the sound changes, nothing else.

    Specifically vowel length and stress on consonants.  Just scientific.  Have them listen to the dialect you want them to learn, and then go over those phonetic changes using the IPA.  You don't even have to start with a racially sensitive dialect.

    ------------------------------
    Julie Sukman
    Theatre Teacher
    Oglethorpe Middle School
    Savannah GA
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Dialect and Race

    Posted 10-02-2018 11:31
    This is an interesting question. I'm sitting here wondering how a dialect lesson could become sticky and then it hit me. Word choice and syntax are wrapped up in socio-economic and regional baggage. But when you're dealing with dialect for the stage, though, the focus needs to be on the ways the words sound, and not what the words are or the ways in which sentences are constructed. Then, the colorful use of language is more about character choices and not regional stereotypes. 

    When I studied dialect, we were given short monologues for each. These monologues highlighted specific things about the areas. For example, the cockney dialect monologue was focused on being a Londoner. The Irish one was about peat fires. I'm fairly certain they were written by our instructor - Andrew Jack, dialect coach. Sadly, they're not on his website. I wonder if he still uses them? Anyway, he has a short and fun video tour of British accents which might help shift your students' focus. 

    http://andrewjack.com/extras/

    ------------------------------
    Kaila Schwartz
    Theatre Arts, Director
    Milpitas Unified School District
    San Jose CA
    ------------------------------

    Original Message


Related Content