In an interview with acting teacher, writer, and director, Darren J. Butler, we learn more about this impactful technique to help actors, directors, and writers find the magic in the development of their craft.

Q: What is Inner Voice Technique?

A: Take a look at the logo for Inner Voice Technique above. What's the first thing that comes to mind? 

Q: It looks fake. AI generated.

A: Absolutely. That's on purpose. It's a statement. Ask yourself - How many times have I been to a play, musical, or even a film and felt like the acting was fake or forced? Now, if you're an actor, ask yourself how many times you felt like you were acting and not living moment to moment in your scenes? If you're a writer, how many times have you heard your dialogue spoken aloud and thought it sounded fake? For all my fellow directors out there, how many times have you been directed a play or film project and thought the acting wasn't natural enough? 

Q: I think a lot of people would reply with, "Too many times to count." 

A: Exactly. Keep in mind, acting, directing, and writing are crafts. These crafts are not something you learn overnight or from a single course or from one instructor. It takes years to properly develop a craft. Along the way, you are going to fill your artistic toolbox with many skills, techniques, and experiences that will help you become the artist you want to be. 

Q: Where does Inner Voice Technique come into play?

A: It's one of those tools to add to your toolbox. For over a decade, I have been developing and refining this approach. Now, I want to share it with as many people as possible. The goal is to help actors become more authentic in their acting. For directors, Inner Voice will help you bring out more authentic performances in your actors. For writers, you will learn how to create better scenes for your actors to perform and directors to direct. It's one of the first lessons I present - the triangle of our colleague community to work in tandem to create great art. 

Q: The course is for 6 months. We live in a time where people have short attention spans. Do you think people will commit to six months worth of classes?

A: That's a personal choice, isn't it? You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make them drink. If you want to grow in your craft, then you'll commit and work. If you don't, then you won't. It's as simple as that. And that goes for any training an actor, writer, or director wants to experience to add to their toolbox.  The online version of the class is a "drip course." When you finish one weekly session, you can move onto the next. When you finish the course, you still have access to all the content. You can go back and refer to it anytime you want. 

Q: For the online class, you have Zoom meets and podcasts. Tell us about those.

A: Everyone needs feedback. With an online class, that can be hard because you're isolated. With our course, you have the opportunity to join a monthly Zoom with ten of your fellow classmates. You're not obligated to join a Zoom session, but you can if you want to receive feedback. There are multiple offerings each month, but I will only allow ten students at a time on the Zoom so I can give each group personalized experiences. In the monthly Zooms, students will present what they are working on and receive coaching and feedback.  The podcasts are filled with more information, interviews, and experiences from those using Inner Voice in their craft. 

Q: What is the cost? 

A: It's $49.95 a month for six months. After you complete the course, you have access to the content for one year from your start date. After that, you can keep your access active by paying 29.95 a year for as long as you want. 

Q: How is the online class delivered?

A: I use a platform called Kajabi. It's a great delivery system for a course like this. Your course is delivered weekly for 24 weeks. But there's a catch - to get the new week, you have to have completed the previous week. If you get bogged down with life and miss a week, that's okay. The course allows you to catch up and not miss anything!

Q: What about the in-person class at The Gulf Coast Rep? 

A: It's the best of both worlds. The cost is $80.00 a month for the in-person course, but you also have access to the online version as well. 

Q: If a student is in the area vacationing, can they drop-in for an in-person class? 

A: Absolutely! All they have to do is notify us ahead of time.

Q: How does a potential student sign-up for the course?

A: Click on the button above and "REGISTER with no obligation." This simply adds you to our mailing list. You will receive updates on the launch, and you can make the decision about moving forward or not.