Ever fancied learning a British or Irish accent? Or want to improve your dialect skills to add to your acting resume? No prior dialect coaching is necessary! Whether you’re an established actor, or you just want to learn for fun, this 6-week course is your chance to dive into the standard British accent (RP), London/Cockney accent, standard Irish (Dublin) accent, and standard Scottish (Edinburgh) accent.
In the first 4 sessions (1 dialect per week), we’ll go over all the basics including the key sound features (vowel shifts, consonant changes, rhoticity), plus placement, melody and flow, and then begin to put them into practice with scenes. The last 2 sessions will incorporate flexible study depending on the needs of the group but may include: continued practice, wild card accents (you choose!), individual work (specific scenes or monologues you’d like to work on), and learning how to self-study (including an intro to the IPA – International Phonetic Alphabet).
At the end of the course, you’ll take away with you tools for continued practice of these dialects, as well as the resources to approach the study of any new accent with confidence!
Important Details
Dates: May 13-June 17
Times: Wednesdays, 6:30pm-9:30pm
Cost: $275
Location: 21ten Teaching Annex
301-399 SE Stephens, Portland, OR 97214
About Denise
Denise Hoey grew up in Hampshire, England and holds a BA in Acting. In the final year of her degree she booked her first professional role playing Ophelia in a 6-month UK and Ireland tour of Hamlet which kick-started a long career in UK theatre.
Most recently, she played Frances in You Stupid Darkness! in her debut at 21Ten.
Some UK theatre companies Denise has worked with include: Royal Lyceum Edinburgh, Paines Plough, Dundee Rep, Salisbury Playhouse, Visible Fictions, Scottish Opera, Stellar Quines, Traverse Theatre, Oran Mor, and Sheffield Crucible.
On screen, Denise has worked in TV shows broadcasting on the BBC and ITV in the UK, and her most recent film role is in The Mural, a Portland-made feature releasing this summer.
Denise is also a voice actor in video games, animation, commercials, and audio dramas. Video game roles include: Dr Ava Jansen in Call of Duty, Quintessa in DOTA 2, and Illezra in Black Desert. In 2024, she was nominated for Best Female Gaming Performer at the One Voice Awards and VOX Awards.
As a Dialect Coach, Denise teaches in public workshops and privately, and has just finished working with Irish theatre company, Corrib, on their recent productions of Outside Mullingar and STILT.
Denise was selected to participate in BAFTA’s US Newcomers Program from 2018-2022, and was a mentor for BAFTA’s Vance Byrd Mentorship Program. She is now a BAFTA Connect member.
In her spare time, she sings classic oldies with local a cappella singing group The Honeybees.