If you want to be heard above the hubbub of a busy shopping street or at a noisy protest without shouting and risking damage to your throat/vocal cords then some form of amplification is very useful.

It also means that someone standing at the back of an audience with only a partial view can still hear your message clearly, which is more likely to encourage them to stay.

The easiest and cheapest (£20 approx. from a shop like Maplin) is the megaphone, which can easily be passed from one person to another. It can be argued that it is off-putting to potential spectators, and some people find it embarrassing to use, but if the aim is to get your message across then it seems well worth the risk.

It is particularly useful for attracting a crowd, fairground barker style;

and for stating your key message or what you want people to do.

Otherwise use it at your discretion and keep the volume at the right level. Have a friend at the back of the crowd check audibility for you.

If you're able to invest more money then a personal voice amplification system (like aerobics teachers use) sounds ideal. You can either have something connected to speakers if you're doing a static performance (and are not likely to get moved on suddenly by the police) or a small portable one.

We experienced the portable ones at Womad 2006, used very entertainingly by a pair calling themselves Notional Trust. The amplification level used made them easily audible without being obtrusive.

"Believing they can't be seen, Notional Trust representatives Trevor and Roger give a running commentary on the passing wildlife (i.e. festival-goers) from their portable hide".

How could we adapt and use this format, we wondered...

The only system we could find on the Internet is the ChatterVox PRO portable PA system, $199 equivalent from Audio Voice Technology in Denmark (www.avtech.dk). If you know of anything cheaper, please let us know!

No amplification? Then remember to:

- Blow a whistle before you speak/the drama starts.

- Cup your hands around your mouth if not obscuring your mask etc.

- Face your audience when speaking (obvious, you would think, but its so easy to forget or to plan an action which prevents this).

- Wear half masks rather than full masks. If you have to wear a full mask then try out speaking (loudly) and get a friend to check if you're audible from a distance. Don't waste your fine words...

- Speak slowly - pause much more and longer than normal.

- Make your voice deep.

Using musical instruments.

- If one of you can play an instrument it's always a good way of attracting an audience.

But don't worry if you can't

- Kazoos are an excellent way of 'belting out' a simple tune (either singly or in unison).

For example, Theatre of War (www.theatreofwar.org) used them very effectively to play the first line of 'stars and stripes' in a performance of 'Having a Stab at Global Domination' at the Big Green Gathering 2006.

You can also easily use horns (on sale at most marches), and clowns hooters etc.

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