The Art of Delivery

Though I admittedly do not attend plays as often as I should, I was not blind to the extraordinary talent that was demonstrated by the Westminster Theatre Department last night.  The lengths of some monologues, especially Electra’s, were impressive to say the least.

What stood out to me the most was the delivery of the script. During scenes like the false report of Orestes' death, and Electra’s grieving for her father and brother, the actors skillfully placed emphasis on special words by changing the pitch and volume. Sometimes there was a pause before a word and other times a word was especially stretched out.  In a rough sense of the word, it almost felt like the actors were singing. Often I would close my eyes—not to sleep, I swear—and would listen to the flux and tone of every sentence. It was beautiful. I cannot recall monologues verbatim but I often sensed a rolling pattern of melody, melody, melody, EMPHASIS, and so on.

In delivering a speech, an emphasis in the right place can completely change the view of a story.  As a Communications major myself, I have often been taught in my classes of the “art” of delivery when a news reporter or anchor speaks. Next time you listen to the news, play close attention to which words are stressed. A story can take any turn based on the words stressed.

Often in written word, we become locked into how words look on a page. However one of the beauties that we receive from the spoken word is the flexibility possible in delivery. More than actions and facial expressions, vocal emphasis helped me (the audience) listen and make sense of the narrative.  In Electra, the “music” of tone and the literal live music helped evoke the heights and depths of emotion within the Greek Tragedy.