Multimedia Resources for Learning Accents and Dialects
For actors wishing to learn a particular dialect required by a role, the UCLA Library houses a number of books, CDs, and online resources.
- Acting With an AccentSet of 25 individual CDs with booklets by David Alan Stern, each with a focus on a different accent. Shelved in Arts Library Selected Plays & Monologues PN2071.F6 S73 2003. Loan period is one week.
- Accents and Dialects for Stage and ScreenBy Paul Meier, this manual compiles 24 different accents and includes 12 CDs. Housed in Arts Library Closed Stacks Audio-Visual Media PN2071.F6M45 2009. Loan period is one week.
- Dialects of the British Isles: An Instruction Manual for Nine of the Most Commonly Used Stage Dialects from England, Ireland, Scotland, and WalesAlso by Paul Meier, the set includes a manual and five accompanying CDs featuring a variety of accents from the British Isles and Ireland. Housed in Arts Library Closed Stacks Audio-Visual Media, call number PE1711.M45 2010. Loan period is one week.
- International Dialects of English Archive (IDEA)IDEA is a freely available online repository of primary source English language dialect recordings for actors and other artists in the performing arts.
- Speech Accent ArchiveIncludes speech samples from both native and non-native speakers of English reading the same text.
- Accents and Dialects (British Library)Includes audio recordings of historical dialects from across Great Britain.
Dialect Books for Actors
The Library houses many books on international dialects. Below are titles specifically written for actors.
Additional Dialect Books
Shakespeare Pronunciation
- The Oxford Dictionary of Original Shakespearean Pronunciation (2016) by David Crystal"This dictionary is the first comprehensive description of Shakespearean original pronunciation (OP), enabling practitioners to answer any queries about the pronunciation of individual words. It includes all the words in the First Folio, transcribed using IPA, and provides sound files as an additional aid to pronunciation. It details the main pronunciation evidence in the texts, notably all spelling variants and rhymes. An extensive introduction provides a full account of the aims, evidence, history, and current use of OP in relation to Shakespeare productions as well as other uses."
- Pronouncing Shakespeare: The Globe ExperimentHow did Shakespeare's plays sound when they were originally performed? How can we know, and could the original pronunciation ever be recreated? For three days, Shakespeare's Globe presented a production of Romeo and Juliet in original, Shakespearian pronunciation.
- Shakespeare's Original PronunciationAudio CD. How did Shakespeare sound to the audiences of his day? This disc offers listeners the chance to hear England's greatest playwright performed by a company of actors using the pronunciation of his time. Under the guidance of Ben Crystal, actor and expert in original Shakespearian pronunciation in performance, the company performs some of Shakespeare's best-known sonnets, and solo speeches and scenes from 18 of his plays.
- Shakespeare’s Words: A Glossary and Language CompanionA fresh look at the vocabulary of Shakespeare's poems and plays and compiled a glossary of nearly 14,000 words and meanings. Includes every word which presents the reader with difficulty arising out of the differences between Elizabethan and modern English.
Selected Articles
- How To Master an Accent"Listen as the actress Sarah Jones offers
tips to help you sound like someone else." From the New York Times, Nov. 23 2016. - 6 Accent Tips for ActorsFrom the Dialect Blog, 2011