RP vs OP - Shakespeare on Toast

Ben Crystal, actor & author of Shakespeare on Toast, giving a talk for Macmillan Poland, discusses the differences between performing Shakespeare in Received Pronunciation, and in the accent of Shakespeare's time, Original Pronunciation...

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Entertainment

Tags:

• Ben Crystal
• Shakespeare on Toast
• Macmillan Poland
• Original Pronunciation
• Received Pronunciation

[shakespeareontoast]

@Selminja - a combination of the spellings in the Folio (they often used to spell as they spoke); the rhymes (Sonnet 116 - 'proved' and 'loved' used to rhyme); and orthoepists of the time, including Johnson, wrote books describing the Elizabethan/Jacobean accent.

[shakespeareontoast]

You're absolutely right, I was exaggerating the two accents somewhat for effect, but those characteristics - the faster delivery, the more grounded physical quality, and use of the lower voice register - have been experienced by all the actors that have worked with OP for any length of time.

They do have inherently different natural delivery styles - e.g. we know they spoke OP quickly partly from the Folio spellings (i'th'heat), & a clue from Hamlet (Speak the speech...trippingly on the tongue)

[Schizopantheist]

A combination of evidence (rhymes that don't rhyme with modern pronunciation+ some analytical writings from the period) + some guesswork i think.

[Schizopantheist]

Essentially OP sounds more or less as we like to think pirates sound (but with less 'Arrring'), or a combination of English west country accent with elements of a northern English accent and/or Irish brogue.

Basically anything BUT the customary 'received pronunciation'.

[selminja]

How do you know what accent people spoke 400 years ago?

[hanaspana84]

@ShadowinaCave The reason he's so good is because his father (David Crystal) is the foremost expert on OP. Would love to see him perform live. I've meet his dad once and he was amazing.

[Gassalasca2]

Unfortunately, he always seems to do that when demonstrating the difference between RP and OP. He never switches just between the accents, he always changes the style of delivery as well, usually dramatically so. When performing Shakespeare in OP, he always lowers his voice, and makes it more monotone, and usually quickens the pace.

But the truth is we don't know what exact style of delivery actors used in Shakespeare's day, and all styles can be done in all accents.

[ShadowinaCave]

@frankantoniomartin

> he does OP brilliantly

Yes he does, doesn't he? ;D

[frankantoniomartin]

@ShadowinaCave I think Ben Crystal is a bit of a comic actor and he is clearly playing it over the top. Agreed it is not a fair comparison, but he does OP brilliantly.

[ShadowinaCave]

@MrJasonSmarts

I think you misunderstood me. When I said "nobody even talks like that" I meant his declamatory style, not RP. I recognise that some people use RP in real life, and I didn't mean to suggest any issue with that. But RP of itself wasn't what made his performance stilted; it was his posturing (both physical and vocal) that did that. My only point was that it was hardly a fair comparison, and didn't of itself show the original pronunciation as a better performance style.