Episode 86 (How Playwrights Hear Their Characters’ Voices)

Join Paul Meier and his past guests for this retrospective of the first eight years of the podcast. Paul will be taking a hiatus and plans to return in 2026, so, for this last episode of 2025, let us reminisce. To watch the video version, go to the webpage for this podcast episode at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-of-Speaking.

For the June 2025 episode, Paul and his guest, voice/dialect coach and IDEA Senior Editor Sarah Nichols, discuss the relationship, or lack thereof, between voice coaches and sound designers in the theatre, with particular emphasis on the use of microphones. Visit the podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-of-Speaking for more free information related to the topic.

The May 2025 episode tackles artificial intelligence, or AI. Paul's guests are speech-to-text specialist Michael McAuliffe and dialect coach Tanera Marshall, who worked on "The Brutalist." Paul, Michael, and Tanera, plus co-producer Cameron Meier, discuss AI in the context of human speech in general but especially acting and singing. For free extras and more info, go to the May 2025 podcast page at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-Of-Speaking.

For the April 2025 episode, Paul discusses rhoticity, the use of the letter R in speech. For more information, visit the page associated with this podcast episode at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-Of-Speaking.

The March 2025 episode of "In a Manner of Speaking" is the first to feature a playwright. Paul Meier discusses how playwrights hear their characters voices with Pulitzer Price-nominated James Still. 

Paul's February 2025 podcast episode is his first to focus on the speech of inanimate objects, specifically puppets. But as you will see from this month's guest, accomplished "Sesame Street" puppeteer Spencer Lott, they can be just as animated as any human. Spencer and Paul discuss puppetry and specifically the art of voicing the characters.

For the January 2025 , Paul and his guest, distinguished Cambridge zoologist Arik Kershenbaum, discuss, in a first for this podcast, the speech of non-humans. Why do animals "talk"? For extra free content, make sure to listen to the podcast at PaulMeier.com.

Renowned singing and voice teachers and authors Gillyanne Kayes and Jeremy Fisher return to the podcast for December 2024 to discuss Jeremy's new book, "Just How Boring Are You?" which examines how to be a better podcast guest. For more information, visit the page devoted to this episode at PaulMeier.com/In-A-Manner-Of-Speaking.

Linguist Karen Burgos returns to the podcast for November 2024 to discuss American and British dialects in popular song. She and Paul are joined by podcast co-producer Cameron Meier to examine dialect trends in music from the first decade of the 20th century to today.

Actor, director, and voice/dialect coach Jacqueline Springfield returns to the podcast for October 2024 to discuss voices of the Civil Rights Movement in the United States. Paul and Jacqueline analyze snippets of 11 speeches, from Booker T. Washington in 1895 to President Barack Obama in 2016, looking at dialect, content, and style.