{"id":2152,"date":"2017-01-05T17:01:16","date_gmt":"2017-01-05T17:01:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/?p=2152"},"modified":"2017-09-24T21:27:53","modified_gmt":"2017-09-24T21:27:53","slug":"should-i-could-i-lose-my-accent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/performerstuff.com\/mgs\/should-i-could-i-lose-my-accent\/","title":{"rendered":"Should I (Could I) Lose My Accent?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Should I (Could I) Lose My Accent?<\/h3>\n \"\"<\/a><\/span>

Written by Ginny Kopf<\/p>\n

January 4, 2017<\/p>\n<\/font>

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If you have an accent, should you consider losing it?<\/p>\n

1.\u00a0Maybe no.<\/h4>\n
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The answer is \u201cno\u201d if you are getting roles.\u00a0 Maybe your Southern drawl or Brooklyn accent is what adds to your marketable style.\u00a0 Or maybe your foreign accent attracts attention because it sounds charming or exotic.<\/p>\n

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2.\u00a0But probably yes.<\/h4>\n
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The answer is \u201cyes\u201d if you or your agent feels you\u2019re losing out on roles because of your speech. Your foreign accent or American regionalism may be limiting you in the kinds of roles you can play.\u00a0 True, you could possibly have a long and wonderful career playing only Southern roles, only Latino roles, only Russian characters.\u00a0 But most actors want to have as much range as possible.<\/p>\n

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3.\u00a0Can the audience understand you?<\/h4>\n
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Another reason to reduce an accent is if clarity is an issue.\u00a0 An unusual accent may even hinder communication when people stop to wonder, \u201cWhere are you from?\u201d instead of really listening to what you\u2019re saying.<\/p>\n

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4.\u00a0What would it take to lose your accent?<\/h4>\n
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To \u201close an accent\u201d really means to LEARN what is called a Neutral American dialect, which is the kind of speech a national news anchor has, where you can\u2019t tell what U.S. state the person is from.\u00a0 Neutral American is a dialect you would learn, just like picking up a British or French accent.\u00a0 You\u2019d learn how to do the melody and flow of speech that may be different than how you speak, and how to shape the vowels and consonants.\u00a0 So\u2026since it\u2019s just another dialect, you could learn to flip back into your own accent when you need to.<\/p>\n

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5.\u00a0Maybe just soften it.<\/h4>\n
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If you decide just to lighten up your accent, then you\u2019d work on articulation and pronunciation.\u00a0 Do tongue twisters, read aloud, really opening the mouth and moving that tongue and lips more than you want to.\u00a0 Finish ends of words, especially tip of the tongue consonants like \u2018t\u2019s, \u2018d\u2019s, \u2018L\u2019s, \u2018n\u2019s.\u00a0 Pop those consonants.\u00a0 You may need a diction coach to help you figure out which sounds are most important to clean up, and how exactly to work on it every day.<\/p>\n

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6.\u00a0How long will it take?<\/h4>\n
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It\u2019s like learning to play the piano or taking tennis lessons\u2014it depends on your aptitude and discipline.\u00a0 You\u2019ll hear changes in 6 weeks if you work on it every day for at least a half an hour.\u00a0 To \u201close\u201d your accent will take longer:\u00a0 maybe several months if your accent is thick.<\/p>\n

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7.\u00a0Can you train yourself?<\/h4>\n
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You can<\/em>\u00a0achieve it if:<\/p>\n