Brenda Strong talks about her famous Desperate Housewives voice and why the show is still popular.
1. Strong's speech is easy to recognize.
2. A unique sound made by using certain methods.
The voice of Mary Alice Young on Desperate Housewives, Brenda Strong, is easy to recognize. Someone recognized her just by the sound of her voice one day while she was getting tea at Starbucks.
This experience showed how her part had a long effect and how she gave the character a unique voice. Strong is more careful now that she knows her voice is easy to recognize.
It was a surprise how Strong became Mary Alice. She wasn’t originally cast in the pilot, but she took the place of another actor after it was reshot.
Marc Cherry, the creator of the show, emphasized the distinctive qualities of her voice during the tryout, where she narrated a story while closing her eyes.
How did Brenda Strong give Mary Alice her unique voice?
- Michael Edelstein, the producer, told her to drop her voice into her heart.
- This method made the tone more understanding and approachable.
- Marc Cherry’s musical and rhythmic writing style served as an inspiration for the pace.
- Strong’s normal speaking voice wasn’t in that voice.
Mary Alice, the show’s narrator, killed herself at the beginning of the series, and Strong’s voice became associated with her.
Even though the show had a rough start, Desperate Housewives became famous because the characters were well-developed and the problems they faced were familiar.
Strong thinks that the show’s ongoing impact comes from Marc Cherry’s skill at making characters that people can relate to. You can now watch Desperate Housewives on Hulu.