What does classical before 1900 actually mean?

College Majors Musical Theater Majors
1

<p>Hello - I’m auditioning for drama schools this year. Some have asked for a monologue which is “from a classical play written before 1900”. What does this actually mean? I use a monologue from An Ideal Husband quite a lot, which is 1895 - but I’m guessing that’s not classical!! Does it have to be Shakespeare?</p>

2

<p>Anything written before 1900 is generally considered classical – it does not have to be Shakespeare or Greek. Oscar Wilde is considered a classical author, even though some of his plays were written after 1900. My daughter used a monologue from An Ideal Husband for her comedy classical monologue.</p>

3

<p>That’s great!! So I can use my Ideal Husband monologue then. Thanks for your reply :-)</p>

4

<p>Shakespeare, Moliere, Wilde, Browning, Chekov, Ibsen are all considered classical and pre- 1900.</p>