How to Perform and Deliver a Monologue

It’s possible your monologue has already been chosen for you. Perhaps you are auditioning for a particular part or your teacher, coach or agent has selected one for you to meet a specific criteria. However, if you are making your own selection there’s a wealth of choice out there and some key points to consider: Of course you need to meet any demands of the criteria or situation. For example you might be required to speak in your natural accent or play a role close to your actual age. You may also be planning more than one monologue and want to provide a contrast in era for say a LAMDA exam or show different elements of the same character for a GCSE, BTEC or A Level. You may want to stick in your ‘comfort zone’ or may be looking to really push and challenge yourself...

My best advice would be to chose a monologue that comes from a whole existing, published play, rather than one written as a stand alone monologue. This way you can understand the character and their context in order to give a more in-depth and believable performance. There are also some great monologues written for television and film, and if you are learning one of these it’s worth checking that your specification accepts screenplay monologues.

Choose a monologue that you feel a connection with. It may be that it resonates with a personal experience, or that you just empathise or connect with the character. Of course there are many experiences that you do not wish to empathise with, and if you are choosing an evil or bad character this can be an exciting challenge. Remember to keep a part of yourself, don’t fully become the character as this would be dangerous, but find the elements that you connect with and try to understand them and their situation.

Style and period are important when selecting a monologue, there’s a vast timeline of plays dating back to Greek theatre. Do you want to perform in a classic or modern style? Or are you tackling a piece of Shakespeare and modernising it? Will your piece be comic or tragic, will you address the audience or stay within your 4th wall? When you find a monologue that you’re interested in DO YOUR RESEARCH and understand the style and period that the author was writing in.

So where do you begin searching for the monologue for you? These days an online google search is easy and you can probably even watch clips of others performing the monologues on YouTube. Please be wary and don’t just copy someone else - however brilliant or famous they might be, you will ‘wear’ your monologue slightly differently. Watch different versions of your monologue and make notes and comparisons as to which elements you would like to take on for yourself. As I mentioned, you will need to read, study and watch (if you can) the whole play. You can search if your play is being performed locally, but if this isn’t an option there are subscriptions available for services that stream plays. More and more plays are becoming available to view online these days.

When you have a copy of the play it’s worth making a list of everything your character says about themselves, and a list of what others say about your character. Then you can mark if the points are true or false and begin to build up a picture of your character’s personality.

Stanislavsky would recommend breaking your text up into units and objectives which is a valuable tool so let’s tackle that now:

Decide upon your character’s Super Objective. If you are not familiar with this term then think of it as a life goal, for example Cinderella’s was ‘to Marry the prince and live happily ever after’.  It’s worth thinking about your own ‘life goal’ to begin to understand a character’s ‘super objective’. Perhaps yours is ‘to leave my mark on the world’ or ‘to be a millionaire’ or ‘to entertain for a living’.  All super objectives (or life goals) start with the word ‘to’.

Once you have re-read the play and decided upon your character’s super objective. You can turn back to your monologue and create the units and objectives: This is simply breaking your monologue down into smaller chunks and thinking - How does this situation aim to contribute to my super objective? The objectives should always aim to build towards the super objective. (Regardless if the character ever actually achieves it).

Think of a change of unit as a change of ‘paragraph’ although they can be as small as one word or as large as a paragraph. mark your script at every thought or topic change. Some characters leap about in their thoughts (as we often do) others stay on track or topic, but feel differently about different elements of their speech. This is personal to you the actor, don’t feel there is a right or wrong place to break up your monologue - go with your gut feelings and add an objective to each unit.

Of course your play may only cover a fraction of your character’s life (perhaps they even meet their demise before the end of the play). So consider all the information you have (the given circumstances) and research the era and the play wright throughly.

It’s imperative that you read the play (yes, I’ve said this already!), preferable watch it too . Of course at a more basic level its possible your monologue is a stand alone piece of text. In which case your research is naturally limited. If your piece is from a whole play then you should research the writer and the style and period in which they were writing. Note, the era the piece is set in as it’s possible this is different from the writer’s era.

Stanislavsky would call the context your ‘given circumstances’: the plot, the facts (remember you’ve already made that list of everything your character says about themselves and everything others say about them), the incidents, the period, the time and place, the way of life. Remember to consider how your character feels about the situation and show this through your characterisation (we’ll cover this in the next chapter).

Consider where your character is: where in the world, outside or inside, quiet, busy, alone, what is the season like etc - the more detail the better.  Consider where they have come from (their entrance) and where they are going (their exit if they have one). You may well start centre stage in the middle of a scene, so chanting that super objective in your mind will help you get into character and context before you start.

Who are you talking to a how do you feel about them? This will impact your voice, facial expression and body language.

When you know your context and have set your objectives you can really begin to use your imagination here, and think ‘what if’ I was in this situation, how would I respond ‘if’ dot dot dot. You will now need to use your voice, face and body to create these thoughts, feelings and situations. We are going to break down how you can do that in the next section.

You need to consider both physical and vocal characterisation.

Through your body and mannerisms you need to show your age and situation. Your posture will depend on your age, gender, any medical ailments as well as emotional feelings.

Conduct a centring or ‘leading from’ exercise: where is your character’s centre? Do they lead from the nose, chest, hips, or even elbow?! It can be any part of the body, give it a try and really experiment (mirrors or a camera are useful here to see what you are creating and make a judgement as to what ‘fits’ your character best).

The era will also affect your posture - consider how people behaved as well as what they would be wearing. For example a ladies corset would considerably adjust posture and affect breathing.

Observation is key to creating a bank of mannerisms and characteristics. You may find you are already a natural ‘people watcher’ fascinated by the way that others move and conduct themselves. If watching others makes you (or them!) uncomfortable then simply use television, there is a wealth of life like characters and real individuals that you can watch and learn from. Make a conscious effort to pick the posture, body language and mannerisms that are befitting to your character.

Finally, some actors like to study the animal kingdom to gain inspiration as to how their character should move. For example adopting snake like movement qualities would create a very different character to one that has taken inspiration from a mouse. Try it yourself... look at, consider and experiment with animal like qualities.

Gait, or simply the way a character walks will also take some thought, consider the age and physical ability of the character, observe others and decide... Does your walk lead with your toes, do your feet turn out or in, are knees bent, do you favour one leg, walk with a cane, turn in your ankle etc...

As for the voice; Work on your diction and clarity by conducting face warmups and tongue twisters. Consider where the voice resonates from, are you using the large capacity of chest resonance, or more nasal, or throaty? Again this will depend on the emotional and physical circumstances of your character. Some of these choices will be very natural and almost subconscious, where as others will need conscious thought and effort. You may find you need to consider different elements more or less deeply depending on your monologue, character and situation.

Select your character’s general pitch, and when they will change that pitch. Ensure your voice varies with truthful emotion rather than sticking to the same tone. Consider the rhythm of your speech, following the playwright’s punctuation and syntax is key to adopting the intended rhythm. Be careful when tackling a poetic piece such as Shakespeare; do not break at the end of a line unless the punctuation dictates that you should. Often accents follow a particular pitch pattern that you will also need to adhere too and there are a wealth of vocal coaches and tutorials as to how to adopt particular accents.

Facial expression can tell the audience so much about how a character is truly feeling and there are two schools of thought here: Either to feel the emotion yourself (inside) and allow the expression to come naturally. Or study various emotions, sadness, anger, love, greed etc etc and pull the specific expression. Eg sadness they eye brows are lifted, the mouth down turned... try it, you can most feel the sadness coming - the natural reaction of a lump in your throat and tears coming.

You can of course use a combination of both outside in and inside out, try, experiment and see what works best for you and your character’s situation. Think about how you angle your head within your posture and facial expression, a tilted or lifted head can really change the meaning of your expression. Try some of these in he mirror. Don’t forget the jaw in facial expression, from a smile, tensing of the jaw to lip biting, it can be a great tool in communicating your intended facial expression. Basically consider every element of your face. watch your work back and if you are not creating the desired effect, then adjust the expression until you do so.

Breathing must be supported and projected at all times so that your voice is audible and clear. Your breathing is supported by the diaphragm, abdominal and intercostal muscles and you should always breath deeply for maximum air capacity and therefore support. However, this rule can be bent (or broken) for dramatic effect, for example an upset in a character may snatch a breath from the throat or chest.

Think carefully about how you stage your piece, are you addressing other characters or the audience? Are you alone thinking out loud (delivering a soliloquy)? And how does your character move about the space? It’s worth choreographing your movements (and having a justified reason for why you move where you move). (And, don’t forget how you move which we covered in the characterisation section).

Consider any set such as chairs and tables, don’t create a barrier between yourself and your audience, angle furniture accordingly and make sure you have enough space to move around without bumping into the furniture (unless this is part of your intentional choreographed movement of course). Perhaps your piece is very physical or more representational, in which case it’s important your furniture is sturdy and can withstand any physical movements you are performing on or around it.

Become familiar with your created space, it may be your characters home, in which case you need to feel ‘at home’ as you move throughout your space. How does the character feel about the space they are in? Make sure you reflect that in your acting.

Consider the amount of room you have, will you have seen the room, stage, or platform before hand? With festivals or auditions for example it can be difficult as you may not be familiar with the space. In this case you need to be prepared to adapt to the given space, chairs and tables provided. Knowing your monologue inside out gives you the control and confidence to deal with any distractions or difficulties.

Much of your staging will depend on the style and era of your piece: is it a naturalistic ‘slice of life’ where you do not break your fourth wall? It it directed towards the audience? Or another character on stage? Is it a Restoration comedy, where although you are addressing the characters you also deliver asides to the audience.

Ensure that your use of levels and proxemics are appropriate to your piece; a lot can be understood from how close or far you are from another (imaginary) character, or who is sitting, standing or even cowering at any point.

If stage lighting is present for your monologue and you are permitted to select it, then think carefully about the atmosphere you are creating. Do you want warm or cold lighting? Soft, or bright? Backlighting, colours, a spotlight...? Making the right decision here can really add to the dramatic effect you wish to create.

If there is no lighting available then think carefully about where you situate yourself in the room so that your assessor can see you clearly. For example you don’t want a bright window behind you letting daylight blur you into just a silhouette and avoid your facial expression from being seen. Equally don’t face a bright window that’s forcing you to scrunch up your face.

Sound - are there any sound effects necessary, such as a gun shot, clock chime, knock at the door? Only include these if there is a professional way of doing so, there’s nothing worse than a mis-timed gunshot near the end of a dramatic scene(!). If not, perhaps your reaction on stage can clearly show that your character has heard something. It may be necessary for your piece to be introduced and concluded with a section of music, such as in a gala evening of monologues and duologues. In which case you need to instruct the operator to fade the music in and out to avoid a disjointed atmosphere. Never speak over music (especially music with lyrics) as it will be difficult for the audience to hear you clearly.

Are props and costume necessary or even allowed within your criteria? LAMDA exams, for example requires no costume and only ‘essential props’. Whatever is stipulated, you need to be appropriate for the character and your movements - you don’t want to be restricted by a uniform or not comfortable to perform your staging. If you are playing a female Shakespearean character don a full length skirt. Perhaps you character touches and uses their costume, such as picking up a skirt to walk or trousers to sit. If you are making costume choices then ensure they help denote the age, status and gender of your character, as well as, of course the reflecting the era in which they live.

As for props, be careful here; you don’t want ‘death by props’ ONLY use what is absolutely essential to the action or storyline. And be consistent too, if the piece requires a scarf and a dagger, don’t use one and not the other. Eliminating props can be an excellent way to showcase your accurate mime skills (just be careful to place down and re-pick up items from the correct place - no one needs an invisible floating object confusing the action!)

Be especially careful with miming phones and guns. You do not want to accidentally create the symbol of the object rather than miming holding the object. Again consider your era; a phone in the 1970s will need to be held and operated very differently to one from the 1990s.

Is a formal introduction needed for your piece? You may be required to announce the title of your piece, the author and the character you are about to play. You may need to follow with a brief explanation and introduction to any other (imaginary) characters present ‘on stage’. Make sure you have set the space before you begin your introduction so that you are able to seamlessly go into your monologue after you have introduced it. Be sure to do this with absolute confidence as its the first thing the assessor with see and hear from you. Don’t fidget and stand in a neutral position for this. After you’ve delivered your introduction, find your starting position, take two deep breath and repeat your objective in your mind.