A Shakespeare-era voice?

[WilliamTaft]

A clip from a TOEFL listening practice on ETS.com. ETS stands for Educational Testing Service.

..., “In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,”...

Is it a Shakespeare's era British English voice?

 

[probus]

By voice I guess you mean accent. If so, the answer is no. It sounds to me like a modern British RP accent.

 

[PeterCW]

To be fair there are 83 recorded spellings by Shakespeare himself.

 

[emsr2d2]

Is it a Shakespearean-era British English voice?

As there are no recordings, no one knows for certain how people spoke in Shakespeare's time.

 

[probus]

Philomena Cunk knows something about it.

TikTok - Make Your Day

 

[WilliamTaft]

This is a language forum other than a logic one. I know that there are no mechanic, magnetic, or digital sound recording devices at that time. That voice sounds odd to me, and I assume that the professor wants to imitate the voice of Shakespeare's time.
Language is not as accurate as mathematics.
Be patient with an English learner.

 

[emsr2d2]

The person is speaking with a theatrical voice. It's the sort of voice we associate with actors on stage. I would say it's not limited to Shakespeare plays. It's old-fashioned and serious, but not limited to Shakespeare.

 

[PeterCW]

I have heard actors from northern England say that Shakespeare's lines seem more natural if they use their native accents rather than received pronunciation.