Back in late August a web site created by John Capps called SpeechFocus went online. The main feature is four videos of university student audiences (minus sound so far).
All were recorded at a state university in New Jersey, and they look appropriately bored. There is one with 12 people in a U-shaped layout, one with a small audience of 16, and there are two with a large audience of 30.
Without sound it’s a pretty rough simulation of a public speaking class. But, it is a novel alternative to practicing in front of your pets or some stuffed animals.
A prerecorded audience is not a bad idea. One technique that was introduced to me some time ago was to use pictures of faces and even just eyes on cardboard cutouts. You'll need an empty conference room with tables and chairs that you can scatter about the room. With this, one can practice looking your audience in the "eyes" for three to five seconds.
ReplyDeleteWith a prerecorded audience, you'd need a nice big screen and ideally the sounds as well. If it's a big audience though and the camera is on a wide angle, it may be hard to look folks in the "eye." But one is that fearful of the whole thing, it could be a boon.
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