Choosing an audition monologue, part 2

Here are some more things to think about when you are choosing an audition monologue.

Some monologues require portrayal of very strong emotions.  These can be a good choice if you are good at handling a character's emotions.  But I would suggest avoiding any monologue that only involves anger and/or sarcasm.  The auditors will not be impressed by an ability to be angry or sarcastic, because these are almost always two of the first things that beginning actors latch on to.  A number of bad actors try to just get by playing all their roles as angry or sarcastic, you don't want the auditors to think you are one of those actors.

Personally, I would like to see more actors finding monologues that portray a character's vulnerable side.  I would also like to see more monologues relying on "dry" humor, such as a situation where the character doesn't realize how funny their comic monologue actually is.

Also, you probably want to avoid a monologue that relies on some sort of "shock" value.  These are monologues that intentionally use certain subject matter or language just to "shock" the audience and make them uncomfortable.  Like anger and sarcasm, this is just a cheap trick that will not impress the auditors.  (Of course some monologues, particularly comic ones, do rely on surprise twists or a punch line, and some dramatic monologues rely on a certain emotional "punch", but this is not quite the same thing, as you will still need to demonstrate your ability to handle these twists to the auditors)

You will frequently asked to provide “two monologues” or “two contrasting monologues”.  Whether or not the word “contrasting” appears in the instructions or audition notice, it is usually a good idea to make sure that your two monologues are contrasting anyway.  Use this opportunity to show the auditors the variety of roles you can play.  Make sure one of your monologues is comic, and one is dramatic.  Remember, however, that sometimes a dramatic play might include a comic monologue, and a comic play might include a dramatic monologue.  If the purpose of the monologue is to make people laugh, it’s probably comic, otherwise it is probably dramatic.  It’s also usually a good idea to make sure that your two monologues come from two different playwrights.  Also think about having some contrast between the two characters, for example think about finding one character who is professional or educated, and the other character maybe more “streetwise” then booksmart.

If you don’t have a contrast between the two monologues, you may end up typecasting yourself.  For example, if both your monologues are comic, the auditors may assume that you are unable to play drama.  If both your monologues are gay characters (I’ve seen an actor actually do this), the auditors may assume that this is the only type of character you can play.  Or if both your monologues are poor and uneducated characters, this may typecast you as well.

Another thing you may be asked for is a “contemporary” monologue, a “classical” monologue, or one of each.  Unfortunately, there is no universal agreement on what these terms mean.  Everyone agrees that a monologue where a character is speaking exactly like people do today is a “contemporary” monologue, but nobody seems quite sure how old a monologue can be and still be considered “contemporary”.  Everyone seems to agree that Shakespeare counts as “classical”, but nobody is sure exactly who else counts.

To be on the safe side, make sure that your “contemporary” monologue doesn’t have any language in it that seems “old-fashioned”.  Make sure that it is no older than about fifty years, tops.  If it meets both of these criteria, it’s very unlikely that someone will say “that’s not a contemporary monologue!”

For your “classical” monologue, you probably want to stick to plays from before about 1800, and stick with plays originally written in English.  Yes, this does include Shakespeare, but remember what I said earlier about overused monologues.  Unfortunately, just about every monologue from Shakespeare, at least the ones for younger characters, became overused quite some time ago.  For these reasons, I would suggest younger actors choose their classical monologue from a different playwright than Shakespeare.  The very fact that you KNOW a classical playwright other than Shakespeare may well impress the auditors.

I am well aware that there are many, many very good plays that do not meet either my definition of “classical” or “contemporary”.  Does this mean that you shouldn’t use them?  Not at all.  If the audition call or other instructions doesn’t specifically ask for either a “classical” or “contemporary” monologue, then you don’t need to feel constrained by these guidelines.

In fact, if the audition call doesn’t specify that one of the monologues must be “classical”, and the audition isn’t for a classical play, there isn’t really any need for you to include a classical monologue.

This discussion ended up being much longer than I expected!  There really is a lot to think about.  And unfortunately, once you have chosen your monologues, you still have a lot of work to do.  So get to those libraries and bookstores and start reading plays!