On Stage

Would you like to be more confident at public speaking? This open workshop was long anticipated by the members of ZIWA's On Stage group and others. Last year's planned two-day workshop never managed to get off the ground, but thanks to chairlady Christine's persistence, twelve people signed up for a day-long session in the rehearsal room of the American Women's Club in Zürich. In charge for the day was group member Julie-anne Smith, a professional singer, dancer and choreographer who has made her home here in Zürich and is an enthusiastic and valuable member of the group. Everyone was slightly apprehensive at first, but we soon felt comfortable with the room and each other and were keen to get started.

Julie-anne introduced herself, mentioning that she had been involved in drama since the age of three; she has also developed her singing and playing talents. She emphasised the need to take care of one's voice, and to exercise it regularly. Julie-anne is now an experienced teacher and everyone was eager to learn as much from her as possible. The day's program included work on body language, characterisation, improvisation, poetry and song, and how to imbue one's performance with emotion. She suggested that when we need to perform or speak in public, to overcome nerves we could focus on something above the heads of the audience. But be careful not to stretch the neck, move with confidence, don't fidget. Sit down with a straight back and make eye contact.

Then came some ice-breaking games, similar to the ones used by Monica Reppas-Schmid in last year's new member workshop. We stood in a circle and said our own names, then we said someone else's name and they quickly had to follow on. Then we told a story one word at a time, which was quite tricky, especially for the last person to finish off the sentence in one word. This exercise would help anyone performing a play on stage - when someone forgets their lines, the cast needs to carry on. We also did some exercises while sitting and moving one body part at a time, we practised breath control and recited tongue twisters. We discussed regional accents, enunciation, avoiding imitation, getting the message across, breath control and centring oneself. The sedentary exercises were interspersed with movement: responding to cues, alternating different movements, lying down and observing the effect on the voice. For example, we had to walk around the room saying one sentence out loud before changing direction. The physical exercises helped everyone to lose their inhibitions, both with themselves and each other.

In between Julie-anne's program, Liliana and Sophia performed some short skits about situations with our Swiss neighbours, as part of a future Reach Out project. They included Having One's Own Space, Washing Day, and Following Rules. They provoked quite a lot of discussion!

Then Julie-anne handed out some speaking exercise for the afternoon which would help everyone to put into practise all the tips they had learnt. These tips and observations included the following:
- Don't talk too quickly
- Record yourself and play it back
- Don't drop your voice
- Observe the rise and fall of the voice
- Know the room
- Use of microphone
- Cue cards or folders
- Look up not down
- Pause for effect
- Relax
- Visualise yourself making the speech
- Don't apologise
- Generate positive energy
- The message is important
- The audience want you to succeed
- Eyes into mid-space
- Don't fidget or rock
- Don't looked scared
- Don't pace up and down
- Practise
- Remember eye contact
- Have your glasses on or handy
- Acknowledge the applause
- Don't let your guard down
- Prepare!

At the end of a hard but enjoyable day, everyone left with a feeling of confidence and inspiration which will benefit the group's major project this year, the Calendar Girls show. This promises to be a very enjoyable evening performance for ZIWA members and guests on 28 October 2010; more news will be available soon. If you are interested in helping with the show, contact the chairlady via ZIWA News. Watch this space!


You can read more about Julie-anne's tips for public speaking at this link: Speaking Guidelines.