<p>I ran across this article, and thought others may also find it helpful.</p>
<li>How to Choose the Best Audition Monologue
By Chad Gracia</li>
</ol>
<p>Choosing the best audition monologues requires a little more time,
effort, and research then most young actors (and quite a few
experienced ones) tend to put into the choice.</p>
<p>An audition monologue MUST put you into a character immediately.
You cannot splice and dice dialogue from a play to form your own
monologue; you need several strong, short pieces that reveal your
strengths as an actor. You need to have at hand between two to
four contemporary pieces, and two to four classic pieces. The idea
is to show off your best skills as an actor, emotionally,
physically, and psychologically. </p>
<p>When choosing your audition piece look to the plays both on and off
Broadway that have done well for the last three or four seasons.
They will lead you many times to other plays and scripts by the
same writer. You are going to choose something age appropriate and
a stretch ONLY in that it can show your emotional range while in
character. For younger actors, some of these books might be helpful:</p>
<p>[Classical</a> Monologues for Women](<a href=“http://www.actortips.com/products/monologue_books.htm]Classical”>http://www.actortips.com/products/monologue_books.htm)</p>
<p>In an audition, you don’t have time to create a character; you must
literally be a character all within a space of one to five minutes.
If you are physically young looking then steer away from attempting
old age and vice versa. Choose a character that you immediately
understand and fit with.</p>
<p>Beware choosing the monologues that have been done to death from
standard, favorite plays. Not only to they usually come with the
burden of having been created by a particular actor or actress, who
it is entrenched in people’s memories as ‘belonging’ to that
person, but to a word weary director they can unfortunately cause
him or her to tune out. Called “Listener’s Boredom”, it is simply
the case of having heard one too many Annie Sullivan’s from the
Miracle Worker or, in the case of the classics, one too many
Juliet’s or Romeo’s.</p>
<p>Of course, that doesn’t mean that you can avoid learning a
“classical” monologue. Usually that means one from the Greeks,
Shakespeare, or something a few hundred years old and in verse.
Here are 50 of my favorite classical monologues for women and girls:</p>
<p>[Becoming</a> a Successful Actor](<a href=“http://www.actortips.com/products/classical_monologues_f_desc.htm]Becoming”>http://www.actortips.com/products/classical_monologues_f_desc.htm)</p>
<p>Properly chosen audition pieces will allow you to not only
demonstrate emotional depth, but also character motivation.
Naturally, some of the best monologues in plays come at key points,
but, again, read the whole play and there is a good chance you will
see some subtler, but equally rich, speeches that show character
motivation leading up to the critical juncture of the play. </p>
<p>They may sound fresher, causing the artistic and casting directors
to pick up their ears, and they demonstrate your ability to
understand the character on an intellectual level.</p>
<p>Rehearse, rehearse, and rehearse, of course, but you also need to
have your monologues critiqued prior including them in your
repertoire. What does a respected director or teacher/coach think
about your choices and what does the average person on the street
think about them as well? Solicit up to three opinions of people
you trust to give you an honest and unbiased evaluation. You may
want to prep them by writing a two - to five question questionnaire
to help them know what to watch for in your performance. Ask them
what would they suggest you do to improve - ignore their
compliments, their criticism is what’s most important to you.</p>
<p>It is better to run the risk of auditioning with a well-rehearsed
monologue that is short, than worrying about running over time. Do
NOT dress the part of the character as much as suggest the
character through a piece of jewelry or article of clothing that
may add to your confidence without detracting from your
performance. If you chose to do a monologue from a play not
immediately familiar to the masses, it is a good idea to memorize a
one to two sentence summary of the play and character to set the
scene. </p>
<p>Audition monologues should not remain static despite the fact you
can call them up and perform them instantaneously. The best way is
to lay them aside for a few weeks and then pick them up again.
Have you been allowing the character to emerge with a distinctive
voice or have you let the novelty wear off and present them with
scant attention to speech and pacing as well as emotions? As you
grow and change as an actor, you will also need to add new
monologues to your repertoire - ones that can begin to convey a
broader range.</p>
<p>Properly chosen audition monologues are yet another part of the
successful package you present to a director along with your resume
and headshots. Their importance lies in not only what you bring to
them, but also what they bring back to you as a showcase for your
individual talents.</p>
<p>Once you’ve got the perfect monologues, you’re ready to polish up
your auditioning skills. The best coach in the world for this is
Linda Zern, and you can learn about her amazing approach here:</p>
<p>[The</a> Audition Coach CD](<a href=“http://www.actortips.com/products/audition_coach.htm]The”>http://www.actortips.com/products/audition_coach.htm)</p>
Sarahlsmom, do you have personal experience with Linda Zern? Tarhunt, Shurtleff’s book <em>is</em> a really good one. Another good one was recommended some time back by our own doctorjohn, and is called “An Actor Behaves.”</p>