Question

Stress and intonation exercises can be a great way to understand the emotional and rhythmic feelings associated with dialogues in a play.

Let us pick a few lines from the play and speak them aloud. Focus on how stress and intonation can change their meaning or emotional impact.

Sentences	Stress	Intonation
I don’t want papa to feel that I don’t care about his opinions, because I do.	‘don’t’ in the first part and ‘do’ in the second part highlights contrast in Shruti’s internal conflict and her deep concern for her father’s feelings	start with a slightly lower tone, conveying concern rise towards the end, emphasising her sincerity
Tonight, at dinner, I promise to bring this up.	‘promise’ and ‘bring this up’ shows Shruti’s determination and the importance of the action she plans to take	start with a decisive tone on ‘promise’ slightly increase in pitch and volume on ‘bring this up’, to indicate resolve
Why are you lost in thought my dear child?	‘lost’ and ‘thought’ draws attention to the concern in Leela’s question	tone should be gentle raise the tone on ‘lost’ indicates curiosity
Each bay, its own wind	‘each’ and ‘own’ highlights the uniqueness of each path one-size-fits all does not work in every situation or for every person	thoughtful and slightly philosophical tone a steady pitch that gently rises on its ‘own’

Answer 1

Sentences	Stress	Intonation
I don’t want papa to feel that I don’t care about his opinions, because I do.	Stress ‘don’t’ in the first part and ‘do’ in the second part. This highlights the contrast in Shruti’s feelings and her concern for her father’s opinions.	Start with a slightly lower, concerned tone and rise towards the end to emphasise her sincerity.
Tonight, at dinner, I promise to bring this up.	Stress ‘promise’ and ‘bring this up’ to show Shruti’s determination and the importance of what she plans to do.	Begin with a decisive tone on ‘promise’ and slightly increase the pitch and volume on ‘bring this up’ to show resolve.
Why are you lost in thought, my dear child?	Stress ‘lost’ and ‘thought’ to emphasise Leela’s concern about Shruti.	Use a gentle, caring tone and raise the tone slightly on ‘lost’ to express curiosity and concern.
Each bay, its own wind.	Stress ‘each’ and ‘own’ to highlight the uniqueness of every person’s path and choice.	Use a thoughtful, slightly philosophical tone with a steady pitch that gently rises on ‘own’.