INSIDE VOICE BLOG — TRACEY HOYT

As an actor, voice performer, coach and director, life continues to bring little victories, challenges and opportunities. I thought I’d share a few of them here on the Inside Voice blog.

The Good:

When a friend/peer/coaching client emails to share that she booked not one but TWO recurring roles on animated series.

The Challenge:

When you can’t hug, toast or celebrate that friend/peer/coaching client in person.

The Good:

When your office closet has been upgraded to a well-equipped home studio, with sound quality you feel proud of, every time you self-tape.

The Challenge:

When the only other soul in the audition waiting room is your cat. She’s adorable but oh, how I miss the social aspect of auditioning.

The Good:

When your first voiceover booking of the year at a professional studio feels completely safe, with COVID protocol followed to the letter.

The Challenge:

When you and the recording engineer in the adjoining studio are the only people on the entire floor of the building and it feels downright spooky.

The Good:

When you have regular requests to self-tape for animation, commercial, new media and audiobook projects.

The Challenge:

When you have to remind yourself to limit your number of takes to choose from. Knowing when to stop has suddenly never been harder. Micromanage much…?

The Good:

When you watch your gifted theatre artist peers creatively pivot and adapt their content for digital use.

The Challenge:

When you miss sitting in a theatre for a live performance more than you ever thought possible. Don’t even get me started on being on stage or I will “ugly” cry.

The Good:

When your acting buddy generously acts as your reader by Zoom for your on-camera self-tapes, and you finally get to return the favour.

The Challenge:

When you can’t be in the room with them and viscerally feel the connection between you.

The Good:

When you narrate an entire nonfiction book by yourself, over 28 hours and your work gets a glowing review.

The Challenge:

When, during the record, your director is at home, working by Zoom, and due to technical issues, can’t hear many of your one-syllable words.

The Good:

When you remotely voice direct and edit a demo reel for the very first time.

The Challenge:

When you forget to join in on the client’s hilarious dance party at the end of the session. Sigh!

We’re all in this together. Even while we’re apart.

Until next time,

Tracey

Dear Readers,

It’s been nearly 11 months since my last blog entry.

When we went into lockdown here in Toronto last March, it was the first time I had taken more than 10 days off in over 30 years.

That was a wake-up call. It felt like perhaps we had all been on treadmills, dancing as fast as we could.

Being forced to stop and to reflect exposed many hard truths, which we are all still navigating, moment to moment, it seems.

My first voiceover coach, Marice Tobias, taught me something I have never forgotten - that when the world changes, the announcer reads in advertising change, too.

Our voices change, as well, as they do when we experience joy, success, grief or loss.

I could hear the change in radio, TV and web spots right away.

Corporations we rely on were thanking frontline workers.

Announcers sounded more compassionate.

Character voices were toned down and more real.

I could also hear that voice talent were sometimes recording from home and not in a professional studio. (Because, in those early days, it wasn’t safe to.) The message still had to get out, even if the means of doing so had to change.

As studios have been slowly opening up again, I’ve been navigating the COVID-19 Protocols - like getting used to wearing a mask until the moment I’m alone in the talent booth or working with the director remotely. I’ve missed seeing my voice acting peers dearly as I self-tape my auditions from home or do recalls on Zoom.

This is the first time in my career that I’ve been consistently been asked to speak in my authentic voice. I’ve narrated several new media projects and an Audiobook. Seeing the engineer or the client in a mask no longer feels strange. I regularly record auditions in my walk-in closet, which I have now soundproofed to the best of my ability.

The reads changed overnight after 9/11 and after the economic recession. They changed again this past spring and of course, they will change again. It’s been fascinating and humbling to realize how crucial the authentic voice has become in this moment.

Recently, I had the pleasure of coaching a group of talented professional BIPOC artists and this notion came up near the end of our time together. A few of the women shared that they had often been asked to pare down or eliminate their unique dialects. That they had rarely or never been asked to speak in their true voices. Let’s hope that changes now.

We talked about the fact that the voice doesn’t lie. The breath doesn’t, either. Making sure you have a full, relaxed breath may be a little tougher these days, but it’s worth the effort. Putting your authentic voice out there has never been more profound – recorded or not. Whether you are reaching out to a loved one, recording an audition or an actual voice job, remember that no one else has your voice. It can make a tremendous difference when you use it mindfully and courageously.

Starting next week, I’ll be guiding two groups of theatre students through a 6-week Voiceover Masterclass. The priority will be to give these young actors permission to discover their authentic voices and all that they reveal – heart, soul, passion, hilarity, heartbreak and hope.

Please take care of your voice, yourself and each other.

We’re all in this together.

Tracey