A bizarre request... (Boston, Oxford: neighbourhoods, top schools, food)

[Ciaran_87]

Hello all,

I have been searching for an appropriate way to go about this strange but hopefully interesting request... I hope posting on this forum is the answer.

I am an actor undergoing a 3 year professional training course in Oxford (England) at the Oxford School of Drama; one of the top schools in the world. I am in my second year and as part of our training we do a lot of work learning accents from around the globe that suit our casting. This time around I have a slightly more detailed mission, which is to not only learn an accent but also to develop a character study. In other words I would be trying to 'play' the person who's accent I am learning. Some people may identify this as a type of 'method acting'.

Essentially I am looking for a male volunteer between the age of 18-30, native to Boston or with a recognisably 'strong' accent (I have also posted in the Chicago forum) who would be willing to have a short Skype (or similar) conversation with me. I would need you to read some words aloud to help me with the accent and basically just have a chat about life, nothing too personal but enough so I can do justice to your 'character'.

This work will remain within the school and will be anonymous as far as your identity is concerned. It's a lot of work for me but hopefully a bit of fun for you and a chance to share your voice! I would be eternally grateful for any response on this, any questions please do ask.

Kind Regards,

Ciaran

[goyguy]

There's more than one recognized Boston accent. One is what I call the Boston Bray, primarily used by White people in lower economic classes ("Don't STAHHT with me.") The other is the one that includes British affectations ("I cahn't believe it") but doesn't mangle the letter R. Yet a third is "WASP/Brahmin" and is more generic - suburbanites from all over speak it.

Regional accents and expressions throughout the world are under siege "thanks" to the Internet, worldwide franchising ("frappe" becomes "milkshake" after enough exposure to fast food menus), etc. Good luck finding a thickly-accented individual under 40 anywhere you look.

[Ciaran_87]

Originally Posted by goyguy

There's more than one recognized Boston accent. One is what I call the Boston Bray, primarily used by White people in lower economic classes ("Don't STAHHT with me.") The other is the one that includes British affectations ("I cahn't believe it") but doesn't mangle the letter R. Yet a third is "WASP/Brahmin" and is more generic - suburbanites from all over speak it.

Regional accents and expressions throughout the world are under siege "thanks" to the Internet, worldwide franchising ("frappe" becomes "milkshake" after enough exposure to fast food menus), etc. Good luck finding a thickly-accented individual under 40 anywhere you look.

I agree, of course it's a similar story here in England. Accents are diverse and language is largely flattened - but to a non-native speaker I suspect any Boston 'Bray' accent will sound far enough removed from my own to present a decent challenge.

From what I understand having read about the various Boston neighbourhoods I have deduced that a Dorchester/Southie accent is the most commonly used in film & TV, would you agree? The sort of 'gritty' side of Boston I suppose... cop drama etc.

I'm holding out hope someone will be able to help, and hey if they're over 40 that's not the end of the world, my 'playing range' probably extends to about 30ish but an older volunteer is far better than no volunteer at all.

Thanks for the response.