Actors audition for a new play with a script, for a new series with sides, and for a new commercial with copy. But once in a while, actors will be asked to do a monologue, especially when meeting with an agent. It’s always easier to audition opposite a partner, reader, or actor from the series on which you want to work, as it allows you to build a rapport. With a monologue, you’re on your own. These are always the most difficult auditions to pull off successfully, so be prepared. Follow these winning strategies when choosing a monologue.
The Keys to Picking a Great Audition Monologue
1. Select an entertaining one
No one in the industry wants to watch an actor working really hard to impress them with their acting, especially if the piece is boring or mediocre. Choose a monologue you love. Doing so, we will love watching you.
2. Find one that fits like a glove so we believe you
Know your type and range, and make sure the part is age-appropriate and physically accurate. It’s agonizing to watch a 25-year-old trying to be 45 or a guy from Minnesota trying to be a Mafioso from Brooklyn. A monologue should show who you are, not add layers of dialects, character traits, a limp, or something outrageous to impress. If they can’t tell you’re acting, that’s good acting.
The Backstage Guide to Delivering a Monologue 3. Choose one that is serio-comedic, not just comedic or dramatic
Serio-comedic monologues are my favorite: Show us a change in emotion but also keep us laughing. Start with a piece that’s funny, quirky, and gets people to laugh and then turn the screw. Hit them with something heartbreaking or touching. They’re already in your corner and you’ve won them over!
4. Work on one that has an arc or storyline
Avoid the Johnny-one-note monologues that show one emotion throughout. They’re boring and tedious, and there’s nothing worse than watching someone rant and rave angrily at the audience for four minutes. We all love to hear stories with twists and turns, so bring us along with you.
5. Keep it short
Every agent I’ve ever met made up their minds about an actor in less than 10 seconds. After two minutes, they change their mind and it goes the other way. Stay within their attention span and you’ll have more success.
6. Find one with an element of surprise
If the audience is three steps ahead of you, they get bored fast. Shift gears suddenly and change your mood or voice. Find a way to keep us on the edge of our seats, wondering what will happen next. Everyone loves to be pleasantly surprised.
7. Choose one that’s not full of foul language or rude, sexual innuendos
The exception here is unless it is essential to the character who, in spite of the language, is funny or quirky. But be careful. Well-written monologues like that are few and far between and most actors aren’t clever enough to pull them off. You run the risk of alienating everyone within earshot and looking like a mediocre actor. Choose good writing over something flashy.
Why You Need to Read the Entire Work a Monologue Is From 8. Discover one that shows you’re a winner
When you leave the room, what will they think of you? What was your lasting impression? Will they cast you? Call you back or shrug? Don’t choose to play a loser, someone who whines, or is a victim. Leave them thinking you’re amazingly courageous—a pirate, a rebel, a survivor!
9. Avoid a recognizable one that a star did really well
You’ll be compared to that star and you won’t win. (Examples include Matt Damon in “Good Will Hunting” or Angelina Jolie in “Girl Interrupted.”) Just don’t go there; you are not Matt Damon or Angelina Jolie. Find a likable character and do the monologue your way.
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and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Backstage or its staff.
