Accents: North American standard and regional
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
Course Code: DVB016
Available start dates
Duration: 10 sessions (over 10 weeks)
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Center for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
Learn how to speak with confidence and authenticity in a North American Broadcast Standard or General American Accent. This course will give you an effective framework, based in simple Phonetics, for studying and learning a North American accent for audition or performance. Regional American accents wil be included, as time permits.
This is a live online course. You will need:
- Internet connection. The classes work best with Chrome.
- A computer with microphone and camera is best (e.g. a PC/laptop/iMac/MacBook), or a tablet/iPad/smart phone/iPhone if you don't have a computer.
- Earphones/headphones/speakers.
We will contact you with joining instructions before your course starts.
What will we cover?
North American Broadcast Standard plus a couple of regional American accents. Knowledge of phonetics is ideal but not essential.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
Break down an accent into its component parts for self-study.
Significantly increase your confidence with American accents.
Increase flexibility of articulators and improve ear training.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
Beginners and Intermediate. All that is required for you is a keen interest in the subject, a healthy dose of patience and a willingness to try out strange and fascinating new speaking possibilities.
In order to get the most from the course you will be able to:
Speak English fluently.
Communicate in group situations.
Give and receive constructive feedback.
Read and respond to a range of texts.
If you are new to voice classes please take a moment to read our
full sequence of voice and speech classes at City Lit (click here) before choosing.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
Detailed breakdown and analysis of the accents, including phonetics. Some prior knowledge of phonetics is therefore useful but not essential. The dialect coach will work with you on priority sounds, both as a group and individually. This course will be taught online.
As part of the course content, your tutor may record your image for initial and ongoing assessment purposes. You are entitled to decline to participate in the recording of your image.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
You may find it useful to have a small hand mirror and you can access resources via Google Classroom.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
Acting for Radio; Narration Skills
Please refer to our
full sequence of voice and speech classes at City Lit (click here) as you consider which area you would like to study next.
Deirdre is a supportive and dynamic acting, drama and accent tutor at Citylit. She trained in acting in NYC and at RADA , and studied Performance and Culture at Goldsmiths (MA). Her directing credits include new writing workshops of Shaken by Louise Page and staged readings of plays and musicals at RADA, a devised play The Disunderstood at CityLit; she has also directed large scale Music Hall Events for The Portico Gallery. As a writer, plays include Waking Beauty, The People Downstairs (Young Vic, Shortlisted for LWT Plays On Stage), The Lizzie Play directed by Rufus Norris (UK and international tours, Time Out & Playbill Critic's Choice) A Cautionary Tale for the National Theatre Studio, and Betty Has To Go Now, commissioned for the 2013 Solo Theatre Festival. Performance credits include Betty Has To Go Now, Adult Child/Dead Child, and What Happened to the Tyrant, Bessie in Arthur Miller's The Ride Down Mount Morgan (West End world premiere), Joanna in Home Free (directed by Kathy Burke), Jeeves and Wooster (ITV) and Simon Gray's Unnatural Pursuits (BBC TV)
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.