MONOLOGUES

WHAT IS A MONOLOGUE?

In theatre, a monologue is presented by a single character, most often to express their mental thoughts aloud, though sometimes also to directly address another character or the audience. Monologues are common across the range of dramatic media (plays, films)as well as in non-dramatic media such as poetry.

There are differences between monologues & other dramatic devices.

A monologue is the thoughts of a person spoken out loud. Monologues are distinct from asides regarding the length and the reception of the other characters. Asides are shorter than monologues and are not heard by other characters even in situations where they logically should be.

Monologues can also be divided along the lines of active and narrative monologues.
In an active, monologue a character is using their speech to achieve a clear goal.

Narrative monologues simply involve a character telling a story and can often be identified by the fact that they are in the past tense.

Preparing for Your Monologue

• mental preparation: (character - set of characteristics - mood - background story - script)

Preparing for your monologue

• physical preparation (posture - body movement - facial expressions - vocal exercises)
• rehearsals

How to Rehearse?

• 1st reading: read the script out loud - make any necessary changes
• 2nd reading: add emotions to your reading. Act it out; don’t just read it. Record your second reading and listen to it to observe your mistakes or to see if you need to make any other changes.

How to Rehearse?

• Memorize your script.
• Video Rehearsals: Take a video of yourself while performing and look closely at the aspects you want to improve in your performance, such as your voice, your emotions, your body language, and your facial expression. Repeat this step as much as you need.
• REPEAT ALL THAT AGAIN AND AGAIN!