Something New
One of the things that does not get mentioned very often is the need to keep your vocal cords hydrated. There are good reasons for this.
First, if you let your throat get too dry, you can begin to sound “raspy” as you talk. This then translates not only into you sounding raspy, but also your puppet(s) will sound raspy as well and then they will not have the voice(s) that your audience identifies with their character.
How do I keep my voice hydrated you ask. It is very simple. Most of us will use the same technique to do this.
Over a 30 minute period, slowly sip and swallow water from a water bottle. Don’t guzzle the water. If you do that, you will have unintended consequences during your performance (the need for a trip to the restroom in the middle of a performance). By slowly sipping the water over a 30 minute period, you will slowly saturate you vocal cords and they will be in the best condition for your performance.
If you seem to have a problem with your throat drying out too quickly, then the obvious solution is to keep a small bottle of water in your pocket or where you can easily grab it when you are on stage.
This is a very easy thing to do, but it can have big rewards in your performance.
We will talk again next week,
Steve and JET