Scientific improvement in the acoustics of legitimate theaters, and the development of electronic sound systems in film and television, have made it possible for audiences to hear the performer more clearly than ever before.

In motion pictures and television, the actor's speech can now be directed intimately to each one in an audience.

Each individual in the audience likes to understand what he's hearing; and make up his own mind as to the truth and realism of it.

The actor's problem is greater because he no longer performs for an audience as a group. He performs for a group of individual thinkers. Each of these individuals bases his critical judgment, either consciously or subconsciously, (audible or not) on remembered experiences of his own or someone else.

Words—their use, meaning, sound and cleanness of delivery —are tools of the actor. The actor's responsibility is to execute these words cleanly and clearly: to do this with such ease and dexterity that they sound pleasing and natural—and above all, so that they produce excitement.

Words—like everything else—are made up of something: they have two parts, sound and action. They also have a beginning and an end. Each sound and action, each beginning and end are of equal importance to every word.

The separate parts of each word must be executed with balanced vitality. In the theater this is necessary to propel the vibrations of sound to each individual ear in the audience. In motion pictures and television this balanced vitality is necessary to energize the sound system.

Balanced vitality is not to be confused with accent and stress.

With a few exceptions, the "parts" of words can—for all practical purposes— be reduced to ten sounds and five actions.

Ten Sounds with

The actions are:

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