COM 63 — The Right to Speak: Finding and Freeing Your Natural Voice
Quarter: Summer
Instructor(s): Ted DesMaisons
Date(s): Jun 24—Aug 12
Class Recording Available: No
Class Meeting Day: Wednesdays
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Class Meeting Time: 7:00—8:50 pm (PT)
Tuition: $545
Refund Deadline: Jun 26
Unit(s): 1
Enrollment Limit: 30
Status: Registration opens May 18, 8:30 am (PT)
Quarter: Summer
Day: Wednesdays
Duration: 8 weeks
Time: 7:00—8:50 pm (PT)
Date(s): Jun 24—Aug 12
Unit(s): 1
Tuition: $545
Refund Deadline: Jun 26
Instructor(s): Ted DesMaisons
Grade Restriction: No letter grade
Enrollment Limit: 30
Recording Available: No
Status: Registration opens May 18, 8:30 am (PT)
We all want to be heard—yet speaking up when it matters most can feel daunting, even for seasoned communicators. The good news: you were born with a natural presence and open voice. The challenge is that habits, stress, and tension often inhibit your ability to communicate with clarity and confidence. In this immersive course, you will identify and release those restrictions through exercises developed by renowned voice and presence coach Patsy Rodenburg, whose clients include Oscar winners, Olympic gold medalists, and global business leaders. You will learn to inhabit what she calls “the second circle,” a physical and attitudinal stance that fosters grounded confidence, authentic connection, and effortless charisma. By engaging body, breath, and voice, you will rediscover your natural clarity and power. Students leave with practical tools and noticeable shifts in how they move, speak, and show up in the world.
This course involves significant participation out loud, with skills building incrementally each week. Students who consistently practice the weekly assignments at home will see the greatest improvement.
TED DESMAISONS
Founder and Principal, ANIMA Learning
Ted DesMaisons is a trained mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) instructor and has studied, performed, and taught improvisation internationally. He has studied intensively with voice and presence coach Patsy Rodenburg and earned recognition as a Patsy Rodenburg Associate. He co-hosts the Monster Baby podcast on improvisation and mindfulness and is the author of Playful Mindfulness. DesMaisons received an MBA from Stanford and an MTh from Harvard. Textbooks for this course:
(Required) Ted DesMaisons, Playful Mindfulness: A Joyful Journey to Everyday Confidence, Calm, and Connection (ISBN 978-1950373000)
(Optional) Patsy Rodenburg, The Right to Speak: Working with the Voice (ISBN 978-1350289475)
(Optional) Patsy Rodenburg, The Right to Speak: Working with the Voice (ISBN 978-1350289475)