For actors, voice work is not just about being louder, clearer or “better spoken”. It is about breath, emotion, identity, confidence and learning how to use your whole self in performance. In this episode of The Drama Coach podcast, Lisa is joined by Rosie Stancliffe, an actor and voice coach from Tyne and Wear, also known online as the Geordie voice coach. Rosie trained at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama with both a BA in acting and an MA in voice studies, and now works as a freelance voice coach and teacher alongside her acting work. The conversation explores what voice training really is, why it matters for young actors, and how performers can build vocal confidence without feeling they have to lose their own accent or identity. It is a rich, practical and thoughtful episode for young performers, parents supporting them, and adult learners who want to understand voice work more deeply.
Episode overview
Rosie begins by talking about her own route into voice coaching. Acting was always her first love, but during the pandemic she began thinking about what else she could do alongside acting. That led her back to Central for an MA in voice studies, returning to an area of training that had already shaped her as a performer. For Rosie, voice lessons were where many of her biggest acting discoveries happened. She describes learning how to bring language to life, connect breath with emotion, release tension, and listen and respond in a more embodied way. Rather than seeing voice as a separate technical subject, Rosie speaks about it as a route into truthful acting. Breath becomes one of the central themes of the episode. Rosie explains how emotions naturally affect breath: shock, anger, panic, elation and sadness all have different breath patterns. For actors, learning to work with breath can offer a way into emotion without forcing or pretending. Lisa and Rosie also discuss how useful that can be for screen acting, where scenes may be filmed out of sequence and repeated many times.
Voice training and confidence
When Lisa asks whether vocal training helps actors build confidence, Rosie’s answer is immediate: yes. She explains that confidence grows when actors understand how sound resonates through the body and how to fill a performance space without pushing. Rosie describes resonance as the vibrations of the voice moving through the body and out into the room. A hum can be a simple starting point: it warms the voice gently and helps actors feel the body “buzz” before opening into vowel sounds. This kind of work allows the voice to become naturally more present, rather than strained or forced. Articulation is another major confidence tool. Rosie talks about warming up the jaw, lips, tongue and soft palate so actors feel more in control of the words they are speaking. Simple exercises such as lip trills, tongue circles, yawns and gentle jaw release can help the voice feel clearer and more available. :contentReference[oaicite:1]{index=1}
Accent, identity and being understood
A powerful part of the conversation focuses on accent and identity. Rosie’s research explores how actors can find confidence in their own accents, and how clarity can be supported without diluting or watering down authenticity. Rosie shares a formative experience from drama school, where she used her own accent in a third-year show and was told afterwards that she had been marked down because she could not always be understood. As an adult voice coach, this experience became one of the catalysts for her research into accent, clarity and authenticity. The discussion is especially valuable for young actors who may feel pressure to change how they speak. Rosie is clear that accents are not just sounds to put on and take off. They are connected to regional identity, cultural identity and lived experience. The aim is not to erase an accent, but to help actors use their own voice with freedom, clarity and pride.
“Your voice is beautiful and wonderful as it is.”
That message sits at the heart of the episode. Voice training is not about making everyone sound the same. It is about opening the voice, celebrating the sounds that are already there, and giving performers more choice.
Verbatim theatre and vocal matching
Lisa and Rosie also explore verbatim theatre, a form of theatre created from the real words of real people, often through interviews. Rosie explains that actors may work from transcripts that preserve speech patterns, pauses and changes of direction, or they may work from recordings and try to match the speaker’s voice more closely. Rosie prefers the term “vocal matching” rather than mimicry, because it suggests respect rather than imitation. This work can help actors understand real speech patterns, learn accents, and avoid overplaying emotion. As Rosie notes, real people often speak about deeply emotional experiences in a surprisingly matter-of-fact way. That can be a useful acting lesson far beyond verbatim theatre. :contentReference[oaicite:3]{index=3}
Practical vocal habits for actors
- Hydrate early. Rosie explains that water takes time to hydrate the vocal folds, so drinking just before a performance or audition is not enough.
- Use steam carefully. Steaming can offer more immediate hydration, but it must be done safely, never with boiling-hot steam, and younger listeners should ask an adult for help.
- Stretch before sound. Rosie recommends a good stretch, a yawn, neck and shoulder rolls, and releasing tension before making bigger vocal sounds.
- Warm up gently. Soft sounds, breath work, resonance and articulation can all help prepare the voice.
- Prepare properly. For drama school auditions, Rosie advises knowing the play, the character and the lines thoroughly, while staying flexible enough to take redirection.
A voice that is already enough
This episode is a reminder that voice work is not about fixing a young actor. It is about helping them understand the instrument they already have. Breath, resonance, articulation, accent, identity and confidence all belong together. For young performers wondering how to begin, Rosie’s advice is both practical and reassuring: stay curious, prepare carefully, warm up with care, and do not rush to change the sound that makes you you. Listen to the full conversation and take time to notice your own voice - not as something to apologise for, but as something to explore, open up and celebrate.