Dialect Testimonials and Reviews
."Testimonials:
“Working with Diane Senffner was not only a great pleasure but extremely helpful to me and the cast of Pygmalion. She is very specific, knowledgeable, and perceptive. A most supportive and generous collaborator.”
- Eve Shapiro, Director, Faculty, The Juilliard School, NYC
"You did a great job with our cast and we appreciate it. It was great working with you…"
-Ryan Page, Co-director Feature Film “Queens of Country"
"I have heard from SO many audience members how incredible the dialects in Once are and I have been so happy to share with them how incredible it was to work with you and how thorough, impressive, immersive, and amazing your resources were! So thank you again!!!!"
- Michelle, Girl in Once
"Thank you, Diane! I'm so glad you got a chance to see your own masterful dialect coaching in action!"
Sarah Wolter, Director Boeing Boeing
I have never NEVER seen a more cohesive show in terms of dialect. I saw Once tonight and it was beautiful. It took me away into the story instead of it making very apparent I was watching a play. Wonderful work Diane! Seriously!
- Marshall Glass, Patron Once
All respect to you for your outstanding and distinctive work.
- Broadway World Reviewer, Herb Paine
I wanted to thank you SO VERY MUCH for all of your help. Our initial call and the pointers you gave me were excellaaaaant. And the recordings you sent me were the gospel as far as I was concerned. They helped me immensely as I tried to master the accent, and made me feel so very comfortable with the role from the very beginning. I believe whatever success I had with the role was due largely to your help--so thanks again.
- Gary Glass, Poirot - Murder on the Orient Express
Diane! Thank you so very much for all you did for us!!
- Tomi, Charlie in Kinky Boots
"At tonight's performance of Charley's Aunt there were some Brits in the audience. They asked me if the cast was actually from England because their accents were so good!!!! Thank you dear lady again!“
- Cheryl Schaar, Director Charley's Aunt, Don Bluth Theatre
"Last night was our first rehearsal for Zao Theatre’s next play, “The Elephant Man”. Our time was spent in a British dialect session led by Diane Nieman Senffner. Diane is a theatre veteran. Her dialect presentation was excellent! She does her homework and explained, demonstrated, and evaluated with such skill! As a theatre producer, I recommend her to anyone who needs to learn dialect, coach a character accent, or just learn for the future. She is jolly wonderful!"
- Mickey Bryce, Director
You are an AMAZING Dialect Coach! What you have done with so many different dialects on Elephant Man is incredible work! I fell so lucky to have been coached by you!!!
- Anna Moore, Actress Elephant Man
"Diane, Thank you again for your superb dialect coaching!!! Amazing! You helped make our show fantastic!!!"
- Jaime Sofia, Charley's Aunt, Don Bluth Theatre
Diane quickly identifies what you need in order to obtain and master the dialect needed. She can easily demonstrate any dialect so flawlessly that you are amazed at her transformation. She gave me the tools and confidence to ease into the character's true dialect which allowed me to honestly inhabit the character. Thank you!
- Greg Lutz, Film Actor
"Congrats to you too, Diane Senffner! Your expertise and coaching played a large part in the success of 39 Steps!!"
- Becky Martinez, Theatre Board President
Working with Diane was a Godsend for my fledgling theatre company. She was extremely prepared, warm and nurturing to my actors and an expert with the specific dialects required. She provided the individual performer with a wealth of creative choices -- and all fitting for the concepts and styles of each particular production. I would enthusiastically recommend her to any artist passionate about detailed, precise vocal work that will complete a characterization. Thank you Diane!”
- Katherine Stewart – Director/Founder – Award Winning Desert Rose Theatre
"I'd also like to thank Diane Senffner who is THE best dialect coach in AZ (Dialect 911, look her up). She helped me find the voice of this character."
- Marshall Glass, AriZoni Award acceptance speech
"After directing 35 productions, and being an artistic director for 10 years, I have had many opportunities to work with various dialect coaches, as well as with actors of varying capabilities, from amateur to professional. During those experiences, out of all of the dialect coaches I have worked with, Ms. Senffner was by far the most effective. Not only can she bring an amateur actor up to a level of competency and proficiency, but she can also bring the professional to a new level of expertise, even curing bad habits they may have developed along the way. She is patient and thorough, and she is a consummate professional with whom to work."
- James K. Barnard, Artistic Director/Founder, Actor’s Renaissance Theatre
"Big, big thanks to you, Diane! Your warm and wonderful coaching was invaluable!"
-Amy Garland, Actress Boeing Boeing
"Thank you again for everything. they really do all sound terrific, i think. You do amazing work in an amazingly short amount of time. :D"
- Ron May, Stray Cat Theatre - Hand to God
The audition went really well and my accent was on point Thanks for all the help so I went in feeling confident. Best coach ever! You rock!
- Leslie Wall, Actress
Diane, you were WONDERFUL! You taught us so much!!
- Nick Buchannan, Actor Importance of Being Ernest
"Thank you so much! I almost wanted to quit when we started doing dialect work. But you were such an amazing coach! Wouldn't have been able to do it without you!"
- Brody Riggs, actor in Hayfever
“I find Diane's ability to distinguish and teach the nuances of different levels of dialect in English, Irish, Scotts, Welsh and the wide range of American accents to be outstanding. She knows how to integrate other dialect coach's training and techniques into her methods to bring excellent results. I owe her my AriZoni best supporting actress nomination for her coaching for my role as Mrs. Higgins in Shaw's Pygmalion.”
- Dorothy Daniels Anderson, actress in Pygmalion
Diane,
I just got done watching the DVD of MCP's production of My Fair Lady and was again amazed at how well the dialects came out (thanks to you!). Your dialect coaching and CD's really did the trick. Tim (my Doolittle as well as my cockney characters sounded so authentic, Katy (Eliza) really got the 2 dialects spot on, Dan (Henry) was flawless, but I think if you look beyond the main characters and start delving into people like Mrs. Pearce, the butler & maids you start hearing the subtle English class language differences that we achieved in the production.
One of our favorite audience comments was from an English couple who told us we had the dialects down perfectly! Your coaching really helped me tremendously, it is such a big show and I did not have the time to work with all my actors on dialects as well as do all the other directorial duties. You should feel a special pride, the show was a tremendous success, received great reviews and is being regarded as oneof the finest productions in MCP's long history.
- Mary Beth Benken Riesenberg, Director My Fair Lady, MCP
“I thank coach Diane Senffner for her encouragement and precision. When you’re doing Shaw, a really strong accent is imperative!”
- Leeann Dearing, actress in Pygmalion
“Diane's coaching on Pygmalion honed my cockney dialect to a polished finish. I was believable, understandable, and authentic. Most importantly, she helped me make the dialect my own so that I could stop thinking about it during performance and remain completely in the moment. I highly recommend Diane Senffner's dialect services!”
- James D. Porter, actor in Pygmalion
“Diane has a wonderful ear for dialects. Her patience, methods, and resources make learning dialects easier and more enjoyable. I highly recommend her!”
- Kelly Turner, Actress
I'm so happy! This past weekend after the show this guy walked up to me and in his authentic British accent said "You have a very good accent!" I immediately thought of you. Thank you so much for all that you did to help me. I know that I wouldn't have been able to do it with out your help. Thank you, thank you! You're amazing!
- Marshall Glass, Actor, Charly’s Aunt
"Once again Diane....thank you for your awesome coaching!! So grateful to you!!!!!"
- Mark Clemente, Director
"Dialect Training for our Cast at FHT! Oh my gosh!!!! I LOVE this woman! Diane Nieman Senffner M.Ed. She is amazing!! Where else would one get specialized dialect training from a professional for a theater for a show!? Chitty Chitty Bang Bang has several involved dialects in addition to British!"
- Kim Cooper Schmidt
"You will love working with Diane. I did."
- Marty Berger
"Diane is the BEST!! Still remember what she taught me"!
- Jennifer Whiting
"We used Diane at Theater Works last year for The Secret Garden... she worked with our cast members on their Yorkshire...she was fabulous and those actors sounded great!"
– Paul Pederson
"Diane saved me when I had to pull off an Irish dialect for Annie Warbucks. I credit her with that Zoni nomination"
- Amy Powers
"Hey Diane!! Just wanted to say thanks so much for the dialect coaching yesterday and your thoroughness and consideration with everything; from recording all the lines to burning the CDs! I learned a lot and feel infinitely better about my accent now. Hope to work with you soon in one capacity or another!"
-Jing Song, actress
”It's rare to see a dialect coach mentioned in a review, but Diane's had her share:
Reviews:
"Diane Senffner provides the essential element of dialect coaching that has afforded each voice its requisite authenticity"
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review, Kinky Boots
"Jill and I thoroughly enjoyed the play last night – better than when we last saw it together in the West End many years ago. We were girding our ears against lapses in the American accents but there was no need...."
- Review, The View from the Bridge, Hampton Hill Theatre, London
"Diane Senffner's dialect coaching establishes perfect Texas accents from the cast....."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of Hand to God)
"With dialect coach Diane Senffner's assistance, the whole cast achieves an assortment of English accents and characters with ease."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of Witness for the Prosecution)
“Kudos to Diane Senffner who is becoming the Valley's go-to-gal for dialect coaching.”
- Mark S.P. Turvin (Goldfish Publishers review Beard of Avon, Actors Renaissance Theatre)
"The use of various wigs, mustaches and hats, partnered with their skilled accents, is a theatrical delight, especially in the fast-paced scenes where the cast play multiple parts within seconds of each other. Dialect coach Diane Senffner is to be commended for her expert work."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of The 39 Steps, MET)
"Diane Senffner's coaching achieves appropriate dialects from the entire cast, including the children."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Review of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang)
"My American ears also did not mind the accents and thought they were well done. My hat is off to Diane Senffner as their coach."
- Eland Relic, (Valley Stages review of The Mousetrap DST)
"Clemente did well to hire dialect coach Diane Senffner."
- Michelle Hoffman, (Arizona Republic review of The Mousetrap DST)
"All three actors have no issues with the southern accents as well, never dropping them and being consistent throughout."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of Driving Miss Daisy, DST)
“I want to compliment the director and dialect coach (Diane Senffner) also for the fact that I could understand almost every single word of the many English accents”
- Paula Shulak (Theatre Maven review of Pygmalion, Southwest Shakespeare)
“Kudos must go to Diane Senffner for giving nearly everyone appropriate and consistent accents that almost all of them carried throughout the evening.”
- Mark S.P. Turvin (Goldfish Publishers review Elephant Man, Theatrescape)
“Senffner’s diction work is perfect”
- Mark S.P. Turvin (Goldfish Publishers review Dancing at Lughnasa, Fountain Hills)
“Senffner's skill as a dialogue coach keeps the accents crisp and consistent, an admirable feat considering the volume of dialogue.”
- Michelle Hoffman (Arizona Republic review of Dancing at Lughnasa, Fountain Hills)
“Special mention must be made of the excellent work of dialect coach Diane Senffner who did a marvelous job of training the actors in their British accents. You could understand every single word, which is not always the case when amateurs attempt an English show”
- Paula Shulak, Theatre Maven Review of 'Mousetrap - FHT'
“Working with Diane Senffner was not only a great pleasure but extremely helpful to me and the cast of Pygmalion. She is very specific, knowledgeable, and perceptive. A most supportive and generous collaborator.”
- Eve Shapiro, Director, Faculty, The Juilliard School, NYC
"You did a great job with our cast and we appreciate it. It was great working with you…"
-Ryan Page, Co-director Feature Film “Queens of Country"
"I have heard from SO many audience members how incredible the dialects in Once are and I have been so happy to share with them how incredible it was to work with you and how thorough, impressive, immersive, and amazing your resources were! So thank you again!!!!"
- Michelle, Girl in Once
"Thank you, Diane! I'm so glad you got a chance to see your own masterful dialect coaching in action!"
Sarah Wolter, Director Boeing Boeing
I have never NEVER seen a more cohesive show in terms of dialect. I saw Once tonight and it was beautiful. It took me away into the story instead of it making very apparent I was watching a play. Wonderful work Diane! Seriously!
- Marshall Glass, Patron Once
All respect to you for your outstanding and distinctive work.
- Broadway World Reviewer, Herb Paine
I wanted to thank you SO VERY MUCH for all of your help. Our initial call and the pointers you gave me were excellaaaaant. And the recordings you sent me were the gospel as far as I was concerned. They helped me immensely as I tried to master the accent, and made me feel so very comfortable with the role from the very beginning. I believe whatever success I had with the role was due largely to your help--so thanks again.
- Gary Glass, Poirot - Murder on the Orient Express
Diane! Thank you so very much for all you did for us!!
- Tomi, Charlie in Kinky Boots
"At tonight's performance of Charley's Aunt there were some Brits in the audience. They asked me if the cast was actually from England because their accents were so good!!!! Thank you dear lady again!“
- Cheryl Schaar, Director Charley's Aunt, Don Bluth Theatre
"Last night was our first rehearsal for Zao Theatre’s next play, “The Elephant Man”. Our time was spent in a British dialect session led by Diane Nieman Senffner. Diane is a theatre veteran. Her dialect presentation was excellent! She does her homework and explained, demonstrated, and evaluated with such skill! As a theatre producer, I recommend her to anyone who needs to learn dialect, coach a character accent, or just learn for the future. She is jolly wonderful!"
- Mickey Bryce, Director
You are an AMAZING Dialect Coach! What you have done with so many different dialects on Elephant Man is incredible work! I fell so lucky to have been coached by you!!!
- Anna Moore, Actress Elephant Man
"Diane, Thank you again for your superb dialect coaching!!! Amazing! You helped make our show fantastic!!!"
- Jaime Sofia, Charley's Aunt, Don Bluth Theatre
Diane quickly identifies what you need in order to obtain and master the dialect needed. She can easily demonstrate any dialect so flawlessly that you are amazed at her transformation. She gave me the tools and confidence to ease into the character's true dialect which allowed me to honestly inhabit the character. Thank you!
- Greg Lutz, Film Actor
"Congrats to you too, Diane Senffner! Your expertise and coaching played a large part in the success of 39 Steps!!"
- Becky Martinez, Theatre Board President
Working with Diane was a Godsend for my fledgling theatre company. She was extremely prepared, warm and nurturing to my actors and an expert with the specific dialects required. She provided the individual performer with a wealth of creative choices -- and all fitting for the concepts and styles of each particular production. I would enthusiastically recommend her to any artist passionate about detailed, precise vocal work that will complete a characterization. Thank you Diane!”
- Katherine Stewart – Director/Founder – Award Winning Desert Rose Theatre
"I'd also like to thank Diane Senffner who is THE best dialect coach in AZ (Dialect 911, look her up). She helped me find the voice of this character."
- Marshall Glass, AriZoni Award acceptance speech
"After directing 35 productions, and being an artistic director for 10 years, I have had many opportunities to work with various dialect coaches, as well as with actors of varying capabilities, from amateur to professional. During those experiences, out of all of the dialect coaches I have worked with, Ms. Senffner was by far the most effective. Not only can she bring an amateur actor up to a level of competency and proficiency, but she can also bring the professional to a new level of expertise, even curing bad habits they may have developed along the way. She is patient and thorough, and she is a consummate professional with whom to work."
- James K. Barnard, Artistic Director/Founder, Actor’s Renaissance Theatre
"Big, big thanks to you, Diane! Your warm and wonderful coaching was invaluable!"
-Amy Garland, Actress Boeing Boeing
"Thank you again for everything. they really do all sound terrific, i think. You do amazing work in an amazingly short amount of time. :D"
- Ron May, Stray Cat Theatre - Hand to God
The audition went really well and my accent was on point Thanks for all the help so I went in feeling confident. Best coach ever! You rock!
- Leslie Wall, Actress
Diane, you were WONDERFUL! You taught us so much!!
- Nick Buchannan, Actor Importance of Being Ernest
"Thank you so much! I almost wanted to quit when we started doing dialect work. But you were such an amazing coach! Wouldn't have been able to do it without you!"
- Brody Riggs, actor in Hayfever
“I find Diane's ability to distinguish and teach the nuances of different levels of dialect in English, Irish, Scotts, Welsh and the wide range of American accents to be outstanding. She knows how to integrate other dialect coach's training and techniques into her methods to bring excellent results. I owe her my AriZoni best supporting actress nomination for her coaching for my role as Mrs. Higgins in Shaw's Pygmalion.”
- Dorothy Daniels Anderson, actress in Pygmalion
Diane,
I just got done watching the DVD of MCP's production of My Fair Lady and was again amazed at how well the dialects came out (thanks to you!). Your dialect coaching and CD's really did the trick. Tim (my Doolittle as well as my cockney characters sounded so authentic, Katy (Eliza) really got the 2 dialects spot on, Dan (Henry) was flawless, but I think if you look beyond the main characters and start delving into people like Mrs. Pearce, the butler & maids you start hearing the subtle English class language differences that we achieved in the production.
One of our favorite audience comments was from an English couple who told us we had the dialects down perfectly! Your coaching really helped me tremendously, it is such a big show and I did not have the time to work with all my actors on dialects as well as do all the other directorial duties. You should feel a special pride, the show was a tremendous success, received great reviews and is being regarded as oneof the finest productions in MCP's long history.
- Mary Beth Benken Riesenberg, Director My Fair Lady, MCP
“I thank coach Diane Senffner for her encouragement and precision. When you’re doing Shaw, a really strong accent is imperative!”
- Leeann Dearing, actress in Pygmalion
“Diane's coaching on Pygmalion honed my cockney dialect to a polished finish. I was believable, understandable, and authentic. Most importantly, she helped me make the dialect my own so that I could stop thinking about it during performance and remain completely in the moment. I highly recommend Diane Senffner's dialect services!”
- James D. Porter, actor in Pygmalion
“Diane has a wonderful ear for dialects. Her patience, methods, and resources make learning dialects easier and more enjoyable. I highly recommend her!”
- Kelly Turner, Actress
I'm so happy! This past weekend after the show this guy walked up to me and in his authentic British accent said "You have a very good accent!" I immediately thought of you. Thank you so much for all that you did to help me. I know that I wouldn't have been able to do it with out your help. Thank you, thank you! You're amazing!
- Marshall Glass, Actor, Charly’s Aunt
"Once again Diane....thank you for your awesome coaching!! So grateful to you!!!!!"
- Mark Clemente, Director
"Dialect Training for our Cast at FHT! Oh my gosh!!!! I LOVE this woman! Diane Nieman Senffner M.Ed. She is amazing!! Where else would one get specialized dialect training from a professional for a theater for a show!? Chitty Chitty Bang Bang has several involved dialects in addition to British!"
- Kim Cooper Schmidt
"You will love working with Diane. I did."
- Marty Berger
"Diane is the BEST!! Still remember what she taught me"!
- Jennifer Whiting
"We used Diane at Theater Works last year for The Secret Garden... she worked with our cast members on their Yorkshire...she was fabulous and those actors sounded great!"
– Paul Pederson
"Diane saved me when I had to pull off an Irish dialect for Annie Warbucks. I credit her with that Zoni nomination"
- Amy Powers
"Hey Diane!! Just wanted to say thanks so much for the dialect coaching yesterday and your thoroughness and consideration with everything; from recording all the lines to burning the CDs! I learned a lot and feel infinitely better about my accent now. Hope to work with you soon in one capacity or another!"
-Jing Song, actress
”It's rare to see a dialect coach mentioned in a review, but Diane's had her share:
Reviews:
"Diane Senffner provides the essential element of dialect coaching that has afforded each voice its requisite authenticity"
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review, Kinky Boots
"Jill and I thoroughly enjoyed the play last night – better than when we last saw it together in the West End many years ago. We were girding our ears against lapses in the American accents but there was no need...."
- Review, The View from the Bridge, Hampton Hill Theatre, London
"Diane Senffner's dialect coaching establishes perfect Texas accents from the cast....."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of Hand to God)
"With dialect coach Diane Senffner's assistance, the whole cast achieves an assortment of English accents and characters with ease."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of Witness for the Prosecution)
“Kudos to Diane Senffner who is becoming the Valley's go-to-gal for dialect coaching.”
- Mark S.P. Turvin (Goldfish Publishers review Beard of Avon, Actors Renaissance Theatre)
"The use of various wigs, mustaches and hats, partnered with their skilled accents, is a theatrical delight, especially in the fast-paced scenes where the cast play multiple parts within seconds of each other. Dialect coach Diane Senffner is to be commended for her expert work."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of The 39 Steps, MET)
"Diane Senffner's coaching achieves appropriate dialects from the entire cast, including the children."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Review of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang)
"My American ears also did not mind the accents and thought they were well done. My hat is off to Diane Senffner as their coach."
- Eland Relic, (Valley Stages review of The Mousetrap DST)
"Clemente did well to hire dialect coach Diane Senffner."
- Michelle Hoffman, (Arizona Republic review of The Mousetrap DST)
"All three actors have no issues with the southern accents as well, never dropping them and being consistent throughout."
- Gil Benbrook, Talkin' Broadway (Broadway World Review of Driving Miss Daisy, DST)
“I want to compliment the director and dialect coach (Diane Senffner) also for the fact that I could understand almost every single word of the many English accents”
- Paula Shulak (Theatre Maven review of Pygmalion, Southwest Shakespeare)
“Kudos must go to Diane Senffner for giving nearly everyone appropriate and consistent accents that almost all of them carried throughout the evening.”
- Mark S.P. Turvin (Goldfish Publishers review Elephant Man, Theatrescape)
“Senffner’s diction work is perfect”
- Mark S.P. Turvin (Goldfish Publishers review Dancing at Lughnasa, Fountain Hills)
“Senffner's skill as a dialogue coach keeps the accents crisp and consistent, an admirable feat considering the volume of dialogue.”
- Michelle Hoffman (Arizona Republic review of Dancing at Lughnasa, Fountain Hills)
“Special mention must be made of the excellent work of dialect coach Diane Senffner who did a marvelous job of training the actors in their British accents. You could understand every single word, which is not always the case when amateurs attempt an English show”
- Paula Shulak, Theatre Maven Review of 'Mousetrap - FHT'
