Articulation

When performing a classical text such as Shakespeare, articulation is one of the most important things. Getting your mouth around large words can be a challenge so these are some exercises I tried and they proved effective:

Tongue-twisters

Unique New York
New York Unique

To sit in solemn silence in a dull dark dock
In a pestilential prison with a life long lock
Awaiting the sensation of a short sharp shock
From a cheap and chippy chopper on a big black block1

Red Leather, Yellow Leather

She says she shall sew a sheet

What a to do to die today,
at a minute or two to two,
a thing distinctly hard to say,
but a harder thing to do.
For they’ll beat a tattoo at two today
a rat a tat at two,
and the dragon will come when he hears the drum
at a minute or two to two today
at a minute or two today.

She stood on the balcony,
inexplicably mimicking him hiccupping,
and amicably welcoming him home.1

A big black bug bit a big black bear and the big black bear bled blue black blood.

Voiced and Unvoiced fricatives 

Voiced fricatives are sounds such as: Ah, Oo, Huh

Unvoiced fricative or Voiceless fricatives are sounds like: Ka, Ta, Suh

These help to warm up the diaphragm as they should all come out by being pushed by the diaphragm.

Performing these in Semi-supine will also really help as semi-supine is great for allowing your spine to completely rest. If you lie like this whilst warming up in can be very useful. It can also drastically improve your posture/alignment. 

Resonance and freeing the voice

- Resonance scan: hum and feel the resonance in various spots around your body. Try to feel vibration on your head, throat, chest, back, crown and face.

- Lip Trills or horse lips: blow on a p or b sound through soft lips. You can go through your range like this also.

- Hum and yawn.