How to Shine at Your Poetry Reading with Diane Tasca

When you read your poetry to an audience, your poems deserve the very best reader they can get. This class will help you to become that reader.

In our 2-hour intensive, we will start by focusing on technical matters such as determining the acoustical quality of the room, using available enhanced amplification such as microphones, and, in particular, improving your own vocal projection and your diction as a reader—while keeping your tone natural and, when appropriate, conversational. Then we will investigate interpretive matters such as defining the speaker of your poem and finding ways to embody that speaker and his or her relationship to the audience, and engagement with the situation and feelings developed in the poem. When you come to the class, you will bring in several poems you have written and read them to us all. We will then discuss your reading, noting where you were most successful and offering constructive suggestions for improving your reading.

BIO

Diane Tasca founded the Pear Theatre in California, serving as Artistic Director for 15 years. She has written a half dozen full-length plays, along with numerous short plays, and has given dramaturgical support to many playwrights at the Pear Theatre. She holds a doctorate in literature.