Teachers open the door. You enter by yourself.
Chinese proverb
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performers
Lucy McMichael, performer: I just got out of the reading. It went very well. I felt comfortable with the Armenian dialect and I got a lot of laughs. And that's what it's all about. All thanks to you.
Dylan Riley Snyder, Performer (age 13): When I moved to New York from the South, I needed to work for a few months with Amy on a non-regional American dialect so that I wouldn’t be labled “That Southern Kid.” Within months I booked the role of Young Tarzan on Broadway. Amy was able to explain IPA to me in a way that made it like a treasure hunt: exciting and fun. My former directors and teachers were very impressed with Amy’s ability to teach a 9-year old (me) not just how to use IPA but also to understand and enjoy it. After going back home to the south for a visit, I was called in for a director’s session back in New York for a lead in a film. I was told by director Todd Solondz that he could hear the southern accent. Mom and I immediately got my script and IPA folder out and set up an appointment for a refresher crash course with Amy — and I booked Life During Wartime that day! Now I’m in the Off-Broadway production of Horton Foote’s Orphans’ Home Cycle. I’ve been able to bring back my southern dialect thanks to the knowledge Amy has given me. Mom says that when the show is over I will return to Amy for another refresher course!
Brooke Volkert, performer: After working with Amy on a Bronx dialect for Savage In Limbo, I decided I wanted to work with her more extensively and took her Vowel and Consonant Boot Camp. I am now extremely confident in my ability to learn dialects, and found that the training has aided me in some unexpected ways. I teach preschool, and am now better at helping the kids with speech impediments than the speech pathologist (wish my salary was increased accordingly), and I recently helped a friend with a strong Philly accent to pronounce the word “tequila” because I could hear that her tongue was placed far too back in her palate. Also, I picked up a West Virginia accent on my own almost effortlessly. So big thanks to Amy!
Andrea Snell, performer: Amy is simply awesome! I came to her somewhat phobic about a Russian accent I’d been working on with a tape, with disastrous results. I was shocked how quickly I picked it up with her help. We did, I think, three sessions. I used it for a character as a play in which I played multiple characters, and it seemed to be everybody's favorite scene. I know it’s supposed to be a bad thing if people come up to an actor and compliment how well they did an accent, but after my horrific pre-Amy struggles, I was thrilled.
Emily Bohannon, Performer: I just wanted to tell you what a pleasure it was to work with you! The good news — though our time together was brief, I nailed down the primary sounds I needed for the South African dialects, and my Syringa Tree audition today was a success!!! Everyone complimented me on the dialect, and couldn’t believe I’d learned it in such a short time. The casting director loved the piece, and said she liked the way I played the narrator!! I’m so happy I worked with you on this; having the confidence with the dialect freed me up to focus on the needs of each character, and I feel really great about the end result. I look forward to working together in the future!
Jen Larkin, Performer: I have the pleasure of recommending Amy Stoller as a superb dialect coach. I worked with Amy in preparation for Boomerang Theatre Co.’s Anna Christie, in which I played the title role. Her clear, concise instruction was exactly the boost I needed to feel more confident in attacking the text. Due to time constraints, we were only able to have one crash course session together – and she was amazingly helpful. She was kind enough to also follow up with me over the phone to be sure I was on task and answer additional questions. I look forward to working with Amy again in the near future!
Paula Hoza, Performer, The Memory of Water: Our lighting designer is a Scot who’s lived all over England and after the first read-through he said to me, “You must’ve lived quite a bit in the North Country. Your accent’s dead on.” So thank you, thank you, thank you!
Andrea Snell, Performer: The sketch with the Russian accent absolutely killed tonight! And I keep getting complimented on my Russian accent! Thank you!
Kelly Diegnan, Performer, Across Dot Ave.: I got the pahht. Thanks for all your help with the Boston accent – I couldn’t have done it without you.
Charles Hagerty, Performer, My Beautiful Laundrette: Thanks for helping me out these past few weeks. I flew in to London yesterday and I wanted to tell you how it went – smoothly, to say the least. Rehearsals were no problem and the creative team and the rest of the cast were impressed. The director’s mother was watching the show wondering where the American was … no one on stage had an American accent! Meeting people after the performance, people would be surprised to hear me speak with an American accent. Again, thanks for all your help.
Karen Eterovich, Writer-Performer, Cheer from Chawton: A Jane Austen Family Theatrical: The audience at the Jane Austen Festival in Bath, England laughed hard and applauded and the picture taking session at the end of the show went on and on … Kudos to my co-director and dialect coach, Amy Stoller – the direction was complimented, the English dialects were complimented.
Matt Fischel, Performer, In the Matter of J. Robert Oppenheimer: Thank you again for helping me to refine and finesse the work on a German accent that I had done prior to our meetings. It made all the difference in letting me forget the dialect and focus on the intentions of Hans Bethe and the character work.
Amanda Quaid, Performer: Well, this is certainly a first. I just got a callback for a major film role I’m not even physically suited to – because the casting director was so impressed with my dialect work. She’s putting me on tape to take to LA so that she can remember it. Thank you for being such a strong ally in this very difficult assignment – you are a marvelous coach.
Monique Fowler, Performer, The Ladies of the Camellias: The Denver Center Theatre Company are offering me Duse! Thank you so much for your expert coaching in a subtle Italian accent. I was able to really get on top of it.
Karen Eterovich, Performer, 2005 Last Frontier Playwrights Conference: A thousand, thousand thanks for the help with the Mexican accent – I booked the job! I can hardly believe it! I am going to Alaska – all expenses paid!
Sean Sutherland, Performer, The Female Heart: I got the part of the Australian reporter. Your coaching was great!
Jurian Hughes, Performer, Rutherford and Son: Amy was the dialect coach on Rutherford and Son, a play I did at the Mint Theatre, and she miraculously managed to teach the cast what is definitely the trickiest dialect I’ve ever had to learn! (Geordie, it’s called. Northeastern England.) She was thorough without being invasive, and her dedication was evident in the abundance of resources she made available to us.
Alice White, Performer, The Charity That Began at Home: We have gotten all favorable reviews … I am very grateful to have been singled out at all, since the role is the smallest one I’ve played in three decades! “Particularly effective is Alice White as the pompous Miss Triggs (she found a marvelously affected accent that telegraphs the worst of her character’s faults instantly).” (Accent compliments of our dialect coach, Amy Stoller!)
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