The Glass Menagerie // Contemporary female monologues // audition help

[Marlene]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 2:42pm

I’m aware that there are plenty of threads on this board addressing auditions and monologue, and I’ve taken a good look at all of them, but still have unanswered questions.

“Applicants must memorize two monologues of two minutes each. Selections should be from well-known, published plays (not musicals), and should reflect contrasting moods and/or characters.”

I’m planning on doing a piece from Shakespeare’s As You Like It (Rosalind, 3:5) and something from The Glass Menagerie, which is posing a problem. I’ve read the play, but I’m having issues with clumping things together into a monologue. If anyone has any suggestions I’d greatly appreciate it, or a suggestion for different contrasting contemporary monologue (which I am currently looking into).

If anyone knows off hand roughly how many lines of Shakespeare 2 minutes, I’d appreciate that too. As what I currently have memorized (which I did for a recitation competition) is only 18 lines, and is cut from a larger blurb, that I am aware is currently too short.

I forgot to add that I'm female, 16, dark haired, and 5'5" if you want to take physical characteristics into helping me find a piece. (Which I know already deviates from Laura's character in TGM.)

[thetheatrekook]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 2:57pm

I'm slightly confused...do both monologues have to be contemporary? Because I wouldn't consider Shakespeare contemporary - and isn't auditioning with Shakespeare usually a no-no?

I don't know how much time you have to prepare these monologues, but if you have to "clump things into a monologue", I would say find a different source. It may just be my pet peeve, but if you have to cut and paste, then it is not the monologue for you.

Do you have access to a Borders or another store like that? I would look into books that have monologues in them, rather than searching through plays. Some of them might be overdone, but if they're asking for monologues from well known plays, I wouldn't worry about it too much. (Sometimes these books are also broken down by time - aka, "Contemporary Two Minute Monologues for Young Women" type stuff.)

And the best way to figure out how long your monologues currently are? Time yourself! Because even just looking at lines, it's impossible to say...one person may speak the lines faster, slower, there might be more pauses, etc...it would be impossible to tell just by counting the lines.

[Marlene]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 3:09pm

Thank you. Sorry for not being very clearI need contrasting monologues, a classical and a contemporary. I pretty much have my heart set on doing the scene from AYLI. Overdone pieces are not a problem for the summer program that I am auditioning for.

This is their list of suggested scenes. (But I would generally like to read the play before doing the piece.)

Chekhov - Uncle Vanya: Sonia
Corthron - Breath, Boom: Prix
Friel - Lovers: Margaret
Guare - House of Blue Leaves: Bananas or Bunny; Marco Polo Sings a Solo: Diane
Hansberry - A Raisin In The Sun: Beneatha
Lorca - House of Bernarda Alba: Adela, Martirio
Martin - Keely and Du: Keely; Anton in Show Business: Lisabett
Medoff - When You Coming Back, Red Ryder?: Angel;
Shange - For Colored Girls...: Any Role
Shepard - Tooth Of Crime: Becky; Buried Child: Shelly
Curse Of The Starving Class: Emma
Williams - Glass Menagerie: Laura
Wilson - Fifth Of July: Shirley; Rimers of Eldritch: Eva
Zindel - The Effect Of Gamma Rays...: Tillie or Ruth

I'm tempted to do a piece from Oleanna by Mamet again...but that's a really last resort piece.


Updated On: 2/20/06 at 03:09 PM

[IdinaRocks]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 3:24pm

hey, i can't help you with the glass menagerie-- i actually had the same exact problem so i decided to go with a different monologue instead- but what summer program are you auditioning for?? it looks like the same recommended list as the one i used =)

[Marlene]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 3:51pm

I'm auditioning for a couple of programs...but most of them have very lenient requirements basically your two contrasting monologues. I am auditioning for a program you mentioned on the Student Board, Idina Rocks. :) It's the list I am pulling it off from...

[thetheatrekook]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 3:56pm

Gotcha.

When is your audition? Do you not have time to read a couple of the plays? Like, just randomly start picking some? I'm not familiar with all the plays on the list...but a few people I know (who are crazy ridiculously amazing actors and phenominally trained) for auditions stay away from Chekov - they say it's generally too difficult. Stay away from "Raisin" or "For Colored Girls" unless you are black...with a piece that well known, it might just be too wierd (at least that's what I would think - maybe they don't care...i don't know what the audition "rule" for that is.)

[Sporti2005]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 3:58pm

if you're trying to put short pieces of dialogue into a format which allows them to seem like a monologue, i'd say don't. it will be hard to follow and probably won't flow very well.

check out THE WOOLGATHERER. if you liked Laura's character, you might like Rose and she has a bunch of monologues.

good luck!
maggie

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 4:20pm

Maggie is absolutely right. You should never cobble together sections of a play to form a monologue. That isn't a monologue! Even if it's only for a summer program, it shouldn't be done. Reading through several plays on that list should give you the options you need to choose a suitable, actual monologue.

[Marlene]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 4:24pm

The auditions are mid March, so I have a little less than a month to find a working contemporary monologue. I'll look in to you suggestion Maggie.

Thanks for the heads up about stringing a monologue together...

[Sporti2005]

Posted: 2/20/06 at 5:24pm

THE WOOLGATHERER is relatively short and a pretty easy read with some really cool twists in it. you might not get it the first read through, but once you do, you'll probably love it :)