Recently, a friend who’s active in politics said something concerning a political campaign that has stayed with me: “Their paid media efforts won’t get over the fact that their candidate is a poor communicator.”

That comment resonated because I’ve experienced the same truth many times in the campaigns I’ve worked on as a speech and media coach. When it comes to political speaking, media buys and online budgets can quickly suck up the oxygen in the political space, leaving the campaign’s star—the candidate—gasping for attention.

Whether you think of politics idealistically (“the art of the possible”) or cynically (a “blood sport”), there’s no denying that it’s a performance art. And be it good theater or bad, most of us would be unwilling to give up our seat and miss the show. That's certainly the case in this season of the 2012 election.

Yet increasingly, that show has involved a bait-and-switch: a line-up of opening acts and little more. The fat lady never sings; or if she does, her voice is weak or off-key. For proof, you need look no further than a leading magazine in the political sphere:  Campaigns & Elections.

The July/August 2011 issue of Campaigns & Elections featured no fewer than four stories on the growing importance of digital and online media. Yet the final televised debate of many in the GOP presidential primary just aired; and recently, a story in the Wall Street Journal reminded readers of the importance of these debates in shaping primary voters’ opinions of the candidates.

The siren song of digital and media buys is endlessly enchanting to campaign and party operatives. But come each November, constituents vote to a different tune, and it’s time candidates and their campaign staff started listening to that music.

Dynamic Performances Move Audiences

Campaigns and their candidates, in other words, can only fake it for so long: TV ads in which the candidate himself or herself doesn’t appear. Debates that aren’t actually debates, requiring only rehearsed bromides on “what the American people want,” and a stated preference for Coke or Pepsi. Social media sites that seek the path to my wallet rather than tapping into truly social concerns.

But these things don’t move me, the voter. What ultimately persuades me is the person running for office and what he or she shows me. And that means you’d better trot out a candidate who knows the art of political performance.

Because you see, I’m a demanding audience. If you want my vote, your candidate needs to be compelling. From meet-and-greets to political breakfasts to handshakes at the factory gates; all the way up to stump speeches, televised debates, broadcast interviews, and paid media—your candidate must both convince and move me.  

Dare I say he or she needs to rouse my passions and make my blood sing?

Dramatic Techniques for Political Performance

W.H. Auden once said, “A great actor can break your heart at 50 feet.” That’s the mantle your candidate should aspire to if you want my vote in the midst of your focus groups, voiceover ads, GOTV, and digital spend.

Fortunately, the techniques you need to make your candidate unforgettable are readily at hand.  

They’re the tools of the theater: the identical techniques actors use on stage and in films to captivate hearts and minds (and that you can use to make constituents pull the desired lever in the voting booth). Actors understand better than anyone in the world how to move audiences. Your candidate can and should use the same techniques to deliver vote-getting performances.  

Here is a Top 10 List of those techniques—the ones candidates need to know and practice to excel at the art of political performance:

1. Total Authenticity: The most important of all performance techniques based in the theater. When you speak in situations that matter (and shouldn’t they all be?), what makes you successful is the fullness of your communication in conveying your authentic message. In speaking powerfully, you draw upon all of your means of expression: physical presence, voice, gestures, and story, along with your content.

You must never think your job as a speaker is to convey information. Instead, it’s to give audiences the complete you, joined with that urgent message. And that means total commitment. To persuade, you need to speak from the gut without a thought to how foolish or exposed you feel. Otherwise, all your policy prescriptions will sound as though they’re made of air.

2. Live in the Moment: Presence is a term that’s used often but seldom defined.  Where stage performance is concerned, it means being “there” for one’s fellow actors. On the political stage, those colleagues are your audience. They’re the ones depending upon you to give them something true that they can believe in and act upon.  

Don’t wear blinders that keep you too focused on your talking points while ignoring the people in front of you.  Live in the moment! Remember that voters want you to be bold, not careful (front-runners, take note.) Invest yourself fully, intellectually and emotionally, in the message you’re trying to get across. Disappear into that message; and by the magic of performance, you will emerge with great power. If you want to understand how total concentration mesmerizes, watch Robert Shaw when he speaks of the sinking of the U.S.S. Indianapolis in the movie Jaws.    

3. Breathing for Speech: Most of us breathe shallowly. To project a strong presence (and to be heard at the back of a crowd), diaphragmatic breathing is necessary. Such “belly breathing” produces a full, resonant voice that has the sound of authority. It’s the ideal method for producing powerfully persuasive speech.

4. Controlled Tension: Being relaxed is nice, but not if you have all the strength of a cooked noodle. Controlled tension, on the other hand, combines calmness with being poised for action. Actors need to stay relaxed yet taut, ready to respond with power while making it all look easy. Like an animal about to spring, they know not to waste an ounce of energy.

Practice focusing your energy in this way, relaxing your body but remaining completely energized. You’ll also be able to think on your feet and respond effectively to what audiences (and opponents) are giving you. Robert DeNiro’s performance in Heat is a superb example of controlled tension.

5. Improvisation: Few tools of the theater are as enjoyable as improv. Use this tool to help you think quickly and act appropriately. There is an eternal “Yes” involved in improv.  This means that everything is accepted for the sake of the exercise; nothing is resisted or rejected. Campaign staff:  throw not only difficult questions, but unlikely situations at your candidate. See how he or she reacts, to help make him or her more nimble and quick-thinking. Prepare your candidate to not only survive but thrive in speeches and debates and to be ready to handle anything that may come their way.

6. Beats and Intentions: This is one of the most interesting applications of dramatic techniques to politics.  Actors pay close attention to the motives and intentions that drive a character’s behavior. Each “beat” is the attempt by a character in the play or film to achieve what is desired; as soon as that desire is fulfilled or frustrated, another beat begins.

Beats are a powerful tool for debate preparation. Here a candidate must be passionate in making a point, yet able to be equally forceful on a separate issue. The range of areas covered can be vast, as, for instance, moving from domestic to foreign policy. A candidate clear on his or her purpose at each stage of a debate owns a powerful tool for getting audiences to think, feel, and do what he or she wants them to.

7. Vocal Dynamics: Want your candidate to influence others when speaking? To engender trust in constituents? To hook listeners’ attention and keep them engaged every minute of a talk or debate? To inspire voters with vision and leadership? To accomplish these tasks, your candidate needs to learn how to use the voice. It’s the most subtle communication tool we own. Not everyone can be a great orator, but every candidate can boost his or her vocal skills to speak more powerfully.

8. Body Expressiveness: Standing and moving with authority can make the difference between a visually boring speech and a memorable one. Dynamic speakers look the part. It’s a truth so obvious we often don’t give it attention and respect:  effective nonverbal communication is essential for successful speaking. It may be time to get your candidate “out of the head and into the body.”

9. Storytelling: Delivering positions and policy is one thing . . . telling a story is another. To connect with voters and propel them to vote for you, tell moving stories every time you speak. Stories are filled with drama and they’re all about people, which is why everyone responds positively to them. Every good speaker learns how to “find their true voice” through personal stories, and to use anecdotes that show their connection to their material. Storytelling is an unparalleled technique for showing audiences how committed you are to the humanity in your message.

10. Using Language: The greatest writer who ever lived was a dramatist, and there’s no one like Shakespeare for teaching us about the power of language. Bring your audience’s imagination to life through the language of your speeches, prepared remarks, opening and closing statements, and media appearances. Vivid language adds color and impact.  

Language used powerfully reminds us of the link between sound and sense (and the emotional punch spoken language can carry). Short, powerful sentences work best.  Deploy the English language like this and you’ll immediately be set apart from your opponents. Your speeches will sing—and people will remember you and what you stand for. Perhaps the best practitioner of this kind of word usage today is playwright and screenwriter David Mamet. Remove Mr. Mamet’s off-color language—of which there is plenty—and you’ll still have an idea of how hard-hitting truly inspired word choices can be.

Great Scenes. Great Actors:  Finally, candidate and campaign: indulge your love of great scenes from your favorite dramas and movies. If a scene or performance moves you, tell your candidate; and candidate, watch it. Hollywood movies have audiences cheering at the end for a reason. Look closely at what’s happening in those scenes, and consider how that emotion might play in your campaign.

Here are a dozen examples of characters, speeches, and performances that will show you how it’s done. Thousands of others from the stage or the silver screen are yours for the finding and enjoyment. Watch or read any of the choices below to gain a sense of the commitment, focus, and sheer depth of emotion great dramatic performance offers.  The techniques are exactly the same for speaking powerfully and persuasively on the political stage:

•    William Holden in Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch.
•    Richard Harris as Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter films.
•    Jane Fonda in Klute.
•    Shirley MacLaine in Terms of Endearment.
•    Jaques’s “All the world’s a stage” speech from Shakespeare’s As You Like It.
•    Alec Baldwin delivering “the sales talk” in Glengarry Glen Ross.
•    Sean Penn in Dead Man Walking or We’re No Angels.
•    Prince Hal’s “I know thee not old man” speech from Shakespeare’s Henry IV, Part Two.
•    Michael Moriarty from the first four seasons of Law and Order.
•    Amy Ryan in Gone Baby Gone.
•    Michael Gambon in the British TV mini-series The Singing Detective.
•    Sally Fields in the American TV mini-series Brothers and Sisters.

Put aside your media contact list for a moment, then, and leave those social media sites.  Re-introduce yourself to great drama for the sake of a great political campaign.

Whether you're the campaign manager for a Barack Obama, a Ronald Reagan, or anyone in between on the political divide: Can you think of a more enjoyable research or training project for you and your candidate?