Accent and Language: Context and Culture with Eric Armstrong

How best should a coach, teacher or researcher approach an accent or language variety and the people who speak it? Accent coach, designer, educator and researcher Eric Armstrong will discuss ethical and reliable research methods, sources, and fieldwork that benefits the community and the artists who will make use of data and materials you generate. Whether preparing for work on historical fiction, contemporary verbatim theatre pieces based on real individuals, or science fiction with constructed language or accents, there is much to consider as you approach the world—and people—of each project you work on. 

Eric Armstrong works as an accent/dialect coach for theatre, film, television and gaming. He is the Chair of the Department of Theatre, Dance & Performance at York University in Toronto, Canada, where he teaches voice, speech, dialects/accents, and text in the BFA acting program. Eric holds a BFA from Concordia University and an MFA from York University, as well as certificates from The Drama Studio, London; The International Commedia Dell'Arte Training Workshop, Italy; and is certified in Knight-Thompson Speechwork. He has taught full-time at university programs for over thirty years in Toronto, Windsor, Boston and Chicago. 

His professional dialect coaching/design for theatre includes work for Project Humanity, Royal Manitoba Theatre Centre, Volcano Theatre, Canadian Stage, Crow's Theatre, Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, Soulpepper, Steppenwolf and Court Theatre; coaching for film and television highlights include designing the Belter accents for Prime Video’s The Expanse, as well as coaching actors Iain Glen, Felicity Jones, Eric Bana, Kelly Macdonald, America Ferrera, Jared Harris, Michelle Williams, Sarah Silverman, and Tom Wilkinson.  

He is a former director and board member of VASTA; he has presented countless times at the annual VASTA conference and has frequently presented on accent resources for under-represented groups. He is a member of the Canada’s National Voice Association and presented on Voice for Devising as part of the 2024 NVA Conference. He has published numerous articles and reviews in the Voice and Speech Review and was the recipient of its Dudley Knight Award for Outstanding Vocal Scholarship. 

🏷️ Price £30 (UK VAT inclusive)
🎥 Recording automatically sent to all who book (even if you cannot attend live)
▶️ Rewatch as many times as you like
📜 Certificate of attendance available