The words are written. The performance is still to come.
A major speech may take weeks to prepare. The argument is considered. The structure is developed. The words are chosen carefully. But the speech still has to be delivered. A speaker must stand before an audience, establish a relationship with the room and hold its attention long enough for the ideas to reach people.
Something that reads beautifully may sound unnatural when spoken. An important point can disappear because it arrives too quickly. A moment intended to be moving may feel oddly unconvincing. And sometimes a speaker can have a room entirely with them without quite knowing why.
Logeion directs the performance itself.
Private Direction brings the professional practice of theatre direction to senior leaders preparing for consequential speeches and public appearances. I work with the person delivering the speech, observing what happens when the material is spoken, identifying what the performance needs and rehearsing the adjustments.
The work is not about teaching somebody to become a more theatrical speaker. It is about making the ideas, the person delivering them and the audience work together.
A speech needs somewhere to go.
As a theatre director, much of my work concerns structure. What happens first? What does the audience understand at this point? What are they expecting? When does the argument change? Where is the moment that makes everything preceding it matter? These questions are as relevant to a major speech as they are to a play.
A speech needs shape. It needs to move. An audience should feel that something is developing, rather than simply receiving a succession of well-written paragraphs. Sometimes the structure already works beautifully on the page, but that structure isn't reaching the audience in performance. A transition needs more space. An idea needs to arrive earlier. The speaker needs to change their relationship with the material.
We may discover that the most important sentence is being lost because everything around it is given equal weight. Or that a beautifully written passage needs to be simpler when spoken aloud. I work with the existing material, and where appropriate with the speechwriter or communications team, to discover how the speech needs to live in the room.
The aim is not simply to deliver the words correctly. It is to make the audience experience what those words are there to communicate.
The first minute. The last minute. Everything between.
Some moments in a speech carry more weight than others. The opening establishes a relationship. Before the audience has understood the argument, it is already forming an impression of the person delivering it. Does the speaker appear comfortable? Are they listening to the room, or concentrating entirely on their next sentence?
Do they begin before the audience is ready? Do they allow themselves to arrive? As the speech develops, different challenges emerge. An important idea needs room to breathe. A change of subject needs to feel inevitable. A moment of humour needs to be allowed to land. A personal story may require a different quality of attention from the speaker.
And the ending must do more than signal that the speech has finished. We rehearse these moments as part of the whole performance, discovering where attention is gained, where it begins to drift and what will bring it back.
Rehearsal is where the speech becomes yours.
Reading a speech aloud is useful. Rehearsing it is different. We begin with the material as it stands. You deliver it. I watch. We identify what is already working, where something is being lost and what might make a difference. Then we try it. We change the intention behind a passage. We experiment with rhythm.
We allow a silence. We discover that a sentence needs less emphasis, or that the speaker has been moving through an important moment without allowing themselves to experience it. Not every adjustment works. That's useful. We can abandon it and try something else. I generally prefer to work over several sessions, allowing time between rehearsals for the individual to practise and absorb what we have discovered.
When we meet again, I can see what has changed. An adjustment that initially felt unfamiliar may now be entirely natural. Something that worked once may need further attention. We continue until the performance becomes more reliable. The objective is not to leave you with twenty instructions to remember when you walk onstage.
It is to make the choices available to you without having to think consciously about each one. Good rehearsal should make you freer, not more constrained.
Preparing for rehearsal
For CEOs, founders and senior leaders preparing a keynote, major speech or public address. Rehearsal works on the opening, the shape of the argument, transitions, rhythm and the ending, in relation to the audience who will hear it. Bring the speech as it stands, any slides or notes, and the event brief. Tell me who will be listening, the time available and how the speech will be delivered. Material need not be final: rehearsal can reveal where the words or structure need further attention with your speechwriter or communications team.
Frequently asked questions
Can you help with a speech that has already been written?
Yes. In many cases, the material will already have been prepared. We work on how it is delivered and what the audience receives. Where the performance reveals a problem with the structure or language, we can address it with the appropriate people.
Can you help develop the speech itself?
My principal role is directing the performance. However, my background includes writing and devising theatre, so I can also offer observations on structure, narrative and how the material works when spoken. Substantial writing or rewriting can be discussed separately.
Do I need several sessions?
I generally recommend several rehearsals over time. This allows changes to develop and gives us an opportunity to see what has improved between sessions. Focused engagements are also available where appropriate.
The speech matters. So does the person delivering it.
An important speech deserves more than beautifully prepared words. It deserves the time and attention required to discover how those words should live in front of an audience. Private Direction works on that performance. If you have a keynote, major speech or public address approaching, I would welcome a conversation about its preparation.
Discuss an upcoming speechAll enquiries are handled discreetly.
Since 2014, I have run professional theatre rehearsals, worked one-to-one with accomplished performers and directed the changes that make a performance work.
The Director’s Eye