“The rain in Spain stays mainly on the plain,” Eliza Doolittle famously says in "My Fair Lady." By the way, she wasn’t the only one who struggled with her accent! Dialects don’t come easy to everyone. Auditioning with an unfamiliar dialect can really get in your way of landing the role. When learning a new dialect, here are some tips to keep in mind to help you have a successful audition. 1. Play the action, not the accent. Don’t let the dialect own the scene. Pay attention to the character’s social class, age, upbringing, objective, and obstacle. I have worked with actors who are so focused on the accent that they are not even listening to the reader. If you are not that skilled, perhaps a hint of the dialect is the way to go. Keep it simple and do what you are trained to do. Let your skill as an actor help you land the job, not a contrived accent. 2. Don’t watch Harry Potter. Just as you wouldn’t expect a southern belle to sound like a Texas Ranger, you can’t expect Mary Poppins to sound like Bert. The dialects in most countries are as diverse as they are in America. For example, the three largest recognizable dialects in England are Southern English, Midland English, and
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