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Velvet Digest

How do you pick a good monologue for an audition?

Author

Mia Phillips

Updated on April 14, 2026

10 Tips For Choosing The Best Monologue For You
  1. Know your casting type and be realistic about it.
  2. Know your age range.
  3. Play to your strengths.
  4. Choose a monologue with shifts in emotion.
  5. Choose one that matches the role you are going for.
  6. If they haven't specified timings, keep it short.
  7. Choose a strong character.
  8. Do not change your accent.

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People also ask, how do you choose a monologue for an audition?

10 Tips for Choosing Your Audition Monologue

  1. Choose a monologue that's active.
  2. Don't do experimental, nonlinear work.
  3. Choose a piece that showcases your acting, not some other skill.
  4. Don't do a monologue from a production you've performed.
  5. Don't do a self-written monologue, a stand-alone piece or a piece that's not from dramatic literature.

how long should a monologue be for an audition? An effective monologue should be around one minute, or 90 seconds max. Length goes hand in hand with entertainment, because you don't want your audience to become bored. It is far better to fill a 30 second monologue with great acting choices than to dredge on for 3 minutes of mediocre acting.

In this way, what is the best monologue for an audition?

10 Best Audition Monologues for Actors – Male/Drama

  • Please Forgive Me…
  • Old Michael.
  • Money Can't Buy Happiness.
  • Once And For All.
  • Wrong Side of the Tracks.
  • Domain.
  • Wasted Talent.
  • Caged Monkeys.

What should you not do in a monologue?

Select an appropriate monologue.

  1. Select a monologue that shows off your diverse acting skills.
  2. Select an age appropriate monologue. Avoid using something that you used several years ago.
  3. Know your audition time limits.
  4. Avoid a monologue that includes excessive swearing, violence, or sex.
Related Question Answers

What is a modern monologue?

Contemporary monologues are any monologues from a relatively recent source — recent being anything in the last 120 years or so, but especially since WWII, and generally in something approaching “plain speech”.

What makes a great monologue?

A monologue is the time to SHOW WHO YOU ARE not add layers of dialects, character traits, a limp or something outrageous to impress. Avoid props UNLESS it is so essential to the scene that it won't work without one. If they can't tell you are “acting”, THAT IS GOOD ACTING.

What are the different types of monologues?

There are two types of monologue:
  • Interior Monologue.
  • Dramatic Monologue.
  • Example #1: The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock (By T. S.
  • Example #2: My Last Duchess (By Robert Browning)
  • Example #3: Romeo and Juliet (By William Shakespeare)
  • Example #4: Mrs. Dalloway (By Virginia Woolf)

What is an example of monologue?

A monologue is a speech given by a single character in a play. Examples of Famous Monologues from Literature: Excerpt from Mark Antony's Monologue in Julius Caesar: Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears; I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him.

Can I write my own monologue for an audition?

Avoid monologues you've written yourself—unless you're really, really good. Performing your own material is risky. Casting directors may focus on the quality of your writing, instead of your acting.

How many words is a monologue?

Total Number of words made out of Monologue = 104 Monologue is an acceptable word in Scrabble with 12 points. Monologue is an accepted word in Word with Friends having 17 points. Monologue is a 9 letter long Word starting with M and ending with E. Below are Total 104 words made out of this word.

What should a monologue include?

The reason for a monologue presentation could be; a story, secret, an answer to a question or an emotional release by a character. As said earlier, the purpose of a monologue includes; a story, secret, an answer to a question or an emotional release by a character.

Do you have to memorize monologues for auditions?

If you're told that the casting director needs all of the actors off-book for the audition, then the answer is easy: memorize your sides. But you'll find that most of the time, it's not mandatory for actors to have their lines memorized for the initial read.

What are some good monologues?

Here are four of the best film monologues ever and reasons why every actor should see them.
  • Alec Baldwin, Glengarry Glen Ross. Lucas Bean. 1.3K subscribers.
  • Jack Nicholson, A Few Good Men. Movieclips. 33M subscribers.
  • Samuel L. Jackson, Pulp Fiction. DesadeMarquis.
  • Matt Damon, Good Will Hunting. BiSONN16. 2.6K subscribers.

How do you rehearse a monologue?

Here are my tips on how to rehearse a monologue.

9 Steps for rehearsing a monologue.

  1. Read the Play. There is no excuse for not reading the play your monologue is from.
  2. Dictionary.
  3. Understand the Style.
  4. Who are you Speaking to?
  5. Use an Acting Technique.
  6. Movement.
  7. Rehearse in Front of Someone.
  8. Try your Monologue Different Ways.

What is the difference between a dialogue and a monologue?

A monologue is where a single person speaks out. A monologue allows the audience to understand the inner thoughts of a character. The difference between a dialogue and monologue is that a monologue has a single speaker but in a dialogue there is two or more.

How can I practice acting alone?

Method 1 Practicing Independently
  1. Record yourself reading monologues and short scenes.
  2. Study the actors you admire.
  3. Focus on your diction, or your manner of speaking.
  4. Practice running one line through a range of emotions.
  5. Practice "cold readings".
  6. Expose yourself to a wide variety of characters, roles, and people.

Is There Life After High School monologue?

Is There Life After High School traverses the memories of a multitude of adults recalling their high school years. Act 1 is set up as a series of monologues and a few duologues of stories about young love, teen angst, missed opportunities, and forgotten hopes. We truly felt the heart ache of her story.

What is a monologue for acting?

Most actors would define a monologue as a dramatic speech. For your purposes, a monologue is a scene where only one character speaks. The other character listens. And here's the catch you're going to imagine that other character standing in front of you.

What are two contrasting monologues?

Contrasting monologues are two very different characters with two very different goals in two very different situations, in two very different plays and two very different genres of dramatic literature. Contrast is black and white, night and day, not differing shades of gray.

How can I become an actor?

Steps to Becoming an Actor
  1. Jump into theater in high school. The path to acting careers can actually begin in high school plays and musicals.
  2. Get experience outside of school.
  3. Get educated.
  4. Practice makes perfect.
  5. Build up an acting resume.
  6. Hire an agent.

What should you not do in an audition?

17 Things To Never Do in an Audition
  1. Don't enter/exit the room awkwardly.
  2. Don't forget your umbrella.
  3. Don't get in over your head at a dance call.
  4. Don't try to audition for characters outside your range.
  5. Don't ignore direction when given.
  6. Don't be TOO enthusiastic.
  7. Don't be too competitive in the holding room.

How short can a monologue be?

Begin writing your script. Remember to keep it short and sweet—a monologue should be no longer than one or two pages long and should take about two minutes to deliver (give or take), including all pauses.

How do you judge a monologue?

The monologue is meant to judge an auditioner's ability to perform a solo piece.
  1. Vocal Characterization. How well were vocal choices made to convey the character in the monologue?
  2. Physical Characterization.
  3. Character Believability.
  4. Dramatic Build up.
  5. Dramatic Impact.
  6. Appropriateness.