Suggestions for trainers/coaches in Phoenix

Matt Gardner

I've finally gotten out of my phone based job so I'm not spending 9 hours a day talking before I have any of my own free time.
Now that my voice is not going to be so taxed all day I want to get down to business and get some vocal training.

I've got experience in stage and voice acting, but my vocal range is nothing spectacular at the moment. I like to think I do what I do well but I want to expand what I do to more than just one voice and to see if I really have what it takes to really pursue voice acting as a career as apposed to a mere hobby.

The bad news is that I have no idea where to look in my location (Phoenix, AZ) for proper training. The acting industry here, from what little I've seen, seems very oddly insular. It reeks of the type of local market that knows it's growing, but doesn't want to admit that it's not in the big leagues yet. There's an notable disdain for the big markets like LA, NYC and Chicago and as a result I never really feel I can trust the word of any local 'professionals'.

So, after my rambling, my question is, does anyone know of any reputable voice coaches or classes in the area?

Everything I've found so far seems to be either someone who'll produce you a demo in trade for a bottle of scotch and call you a star or seminars that seem more like a place to ship your kids off to in the summer months so they're not making the house a mess while you're away at work.

I'd like to find a coach or even a seminar I can learn from and will give me an honest assessment but I don't want to just throw money at someone because they happen to be here.