The 10 best monologues for auditions

In order to get into acting or theater programs, you must read a passage of a work of fiction at your audition. What should you choose? Tips from Stuart Howard, a theater, film and television casting director based in New York City.

I'll tell you straight up: there is simply no such thing as a list of perfect monologues for actors. There are some that I personally like, such as Hamlet's Advice to Actors ("Speak a monologue, please..."). This passage perfectly combines terrific language, the character's charisma and a touch of humor, but not everyone can play Hamlet, and not everyone should. I believe that the monologue should suit the actor and vice versa. I can tell you that those monologues are good, but if they don't suit you, and you don't enjoy them, they can't really do much for you."

Also about the classics: if your audition requires you to do one of Shakespeare's monologues, don't count on being able to do well by memorizing a sonnet. You'll find dozens of great characters and monologues in Shakespeare's plays, both in verse and prose.

Actors ask me all the time for advice on whether a passage should be funny or serious. My answer is to choose what suits you best and what you like best, but remember that it's harder to make a good impression with a short comic passage than with a short serious one.

Actors often ask the question, "What is a monologue anyway?" According to Webster's Dictionary, "A monologue is a passage or work, in verse or prose, representing the words or thoughts of an individual character." So a dialogue from which the second character's lines have been thrown out can certainly not be considered a monologue. I think we can find a better example again in Hamlet: it is a monologue beginning with the words "To be or not to be." The main character stands alone on stage, and depending on the director's vision, he talks to himself or addresses the audience.

I would like to give some advice to actors. The best thing you can do is read, read more, and then read more. Fall in love with the author's words and choose the monologue that best allows you to express that love. Look for familiar plays and read all the ones you are advised to read. If you see and love Eugene O'Neill's "Love Under the Elms" or "Mourning - Elektra's Fate" or Friedrich Schiller's "Mary Stuart," Neil Simon's "The Odd Couple" or Rodgers and Hammerstein's musical "South of the Pacific" why not start reading O'Neill, Schiller, Simon, or Rodgers and Hammerstein?

A monologue to listen to from a musical? Sure. There are a lot of them, and some of them you can safely use to impress the director. My favorite is Cornelius Hackle's monologue in "Hello, Dolly!" Cornelius and the other characters in the musical have been arrested, and while in jail, he suddenly asks the audience if they know how beautiful his sweetheart is. The monologue is taken from Thornton Wilder's comedy "The Matchmaker," which was the basis for the musical. Great for auditions because it is extremely romantic and touchingly funny. Everyone in love understands Cornelius' feelings.

Monologue for Listening to Measure for Measure: Claudio

Author: William Shakespeare

I suggest young people pay attention to Claudio in this play. He has a terrific monologue to his sister. Claudio finds himself in prison for his lecherous behavior, and his sister tells him that she will not sacrifice her innocence to save his life. The monologue begins, "But to die... To go-where, you don't know...". Claudio suddenly realizes that his life is at stake and wishes his sister could feel his despair. By the way, if you're taking a work written in a foreign language, choose the translation you like best and sound better in your native tongue.

The Tempest Monologue: Trinculo

Author: William Shakespeare

If you're looking for a more adult character with a subtle sense of humor, take a look at Trinculo's monologue from The Tempest. It begins, "Not a tree, not a bush..." and is spoken by the character as he seeks shelter from the storm and stumbles upon a dead man. The passage is full of ridiculous descriptions; everything Trinculo sees makes him genuinely disgusted.

Monologue for Listening to Twelfth Night: Viola

Author: William Shakespeare

It is every girl's dream to play Viola in Twelfth Night. When the character is completely confused about her feelings, a beautiful monologue emerges. It begins, "Some ring... What happened to her?" It's not often you have to play a confused girl dressed as a young man and become the object of a beautiful lady's love.

"The Seagull": Konstantin

Author: Anton Chekhov

Chekhov is one of my favorite playwrights. Konstantin, the main character in the play, tells his dear uncle that his mother does not love him. The monologue begins with the words, "She loves him, she loves him not...." This passage is very sad, frank and poignant.

"The Seagull": Masha

Author: Anton Chekhov

Masha is one of the most magnificent characters in modern drama. Pay special attention to her monologue about her future husband, the schoolteacher who loves her with all his soul and whom she herself can't stand. It begins, "All this I tell you as a writer."

"The Dreamer": Georgie

Author: Elmer Rice

Georgie, the play's protagonist, wakes up and, getting ready for work, performs her morning toilet routine in front of the mirror. The monologue is charming, funny, and sincere.

"An Invitation to March: Camille

Author: Arthur Laurents

The play begins with the protagonist, a middle-aged lady, Camille Jablonski, addressing the audience and telling who she is, where she lives, what she wants from life, and how she will get there. The monologue is very funny and lively.

"For every wise man, there is simplicity enough." Glumov

Author: Alexander Ostrovsky

The main character, the young Glumov, speaks to his beloved, Cleopatra. This emotional monologue will leave no one indifferent. It begins, "How shall I grieve you!"

"Fear and Poverty in the Third Empire: The Jewish Wife

Author: Berthold Brecht

This is a very long monologue (about 20 minutes), but it can be divided into magnificent passages. A Jewish woman packs her bags and talks to herself, then to her husband, and finally leaves him. She doesn't want her religion to ruin his life. He doesn't try to stop her.

"Cleo, Camping, Emmanuel and Dick": Imogene

Author: Terry Johnson

A very funny play about the movie industry. Imogene, a beautiful and seductive actress, has had too much to drink, and tells everyone around her that she wants to be remembered for her talent, not for her sexy looks.

Remember, the important thing in auditioning is not the monologue itself, but how you present it. Pick one you like, and when you get bored with it, look for another.

Author: Stuart Howard, a theater, film and television casting director from New York City. His recent work includes a contemporary production of "West Side Story." He holds a BA from Carnegie Mellon University and an MA in Drama from Purdue University, as well as a degree in French Classical Drama from Sorbonne University.

Translation by: Natalia Sklyomina