
Performing & Presenting in English with Confidence and Clarity

21 – 25 September 2020
Venue: Movement Studio Deligianni 19, Athens
Performing & Presenting with Confidence and Clarity (PPCC) workshops and individual coaching sessions are intended for those who have the need to work in English, including:
- actors (of all levels of experience)
- business executives
- professionals
- academics
- lawyers
- politicians
The workshops will enhance your ability to speak with a Standard English accent, and foster your ability to radiate confidence and engage audiences through your physical presence, whether performing or making presentations.
PPCC offers group workshops and individual coaching, both in-person and online.
PPCC workshops and individual coaching focus on accent softening or neutralization; participants will work on the basic sounds of Standard English and focus on common English pronunciation errors made by Greek speakers, and speakers of other languages as necessary. In addition, workshops and individual coaching will cover the ‘musicality’ of standard English, it’s intonation patterns and stress patterns.
At the heart of the work of PPCC is the link between speaking and the body: as internationally renowned voice coach Patsy Rodenburg says, “Speaking is a physical activity.” Workshops and individual coaching, therefore, explores the physical ways in which speakers undermine their presence, during performance, presentations, lectures or meetings, and trains speakers in the physical abilities they need to project presence and confidence to both large audiences and personal encounters.
For Actors
Fluency and confidence in English is of great importance for actors and storytellers who wish to perform or audition in English. It is of particular value for those who wish to study in English or American training programmes.
Workshops and individual coaching, as noted above, will firstly focus on accent softening and the development of a neutral or standard English accent, alongside developing physical presence and expressivity. During the second part of the training, actors work on a piece of text of their choice, either from a contemporary play or Shakespeare. The course will combine correct English pronunciation and physical expressivity with an actor’s work on character and intention.
For business executives, professionals, academics, lawyers and politicians
Fluency and confidence in English is of great importance for business executives, professionals, academics, lawyers and politicians, owing to the importance of English as an international language that allows people from around the world to communicate. The need to acquire competence and confidence in making presentations and conversing in English has only been increased with the growth of the internet, using such platforms as Skype and Zoom.
Workshops and individual coaching, as noted above, will firstly focus on accent softening and the development of a neutral or standard English accent, together with the development of confidence, physical presence and expressivity. During the second part of the training, business executives and academics will work on a presentation of their choice. The course will combine correct English pronunciation and physicality with a presenter’s need for clear communication and the ability to capture and hold an audience’s attention. Coaching will address both in-person and online presentations.
12.00-15.00 Afternoon group
17.00-20.00 Evening group
Private classes
Workshop Fees: 120
Student and unwaged: 95
Booking and info: info@themakingsactor.com
Facilitated by
Dr. Roger Smart Originally from the UK, Dr Roger Smart works as a voice and dialect coach and trainer of actors in the USA and Europe. He served as Director of Education and Training at Court Theatre, and Artistic Director of Shattered Globe Theatre, both in Chicago. He has taught voice, speech and dialect classes in American university actor training programs and at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, England. In addition, he works as a voice and dialect coach on both collegiate and professional productions. He has been a Certified Associate Teacher of Fitzmaurice Voicework® since 2005, and has trained with speech and dialect master Dudley Knight in Knight-Thompson Speechwork at the University of California, Irvine, where he earned an MFA in Directing. He has a PhD from Goldsmiths College, University of London, which focused on psychophysical approaches to training and rehearsing actors. He is Director of Pedagogical Research at The Makings of the Actor, an International Practice Centre for Actor’s training
Dr Kiki Selioni is a movement teacher and acting coach in various Drama Schools and Institutions internationally. She has completed her studies in Dance Theatre at the Laban in London (BA and MA, City University. She holds a doctorate in Movement Training for Actors and in Acting Royal Central School of Speech and Drama University of London . She is currently Affiliate Research Fellow at r Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in a post-doc research project (The British Acting School: Biophysical Acting) regarding a complete acting method based on Laban’s work and Aristotle’s theory and Visitor Teacher at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. She is Founder and artistic Director of The Makings of the Actor an International Practice Centre for Actor΄s training