Picking The Right Monologue For Auditions – Screenwise Tips

During the audition process you can be sometimes required to deliver a monologue of your choosing, in particular for our Advanced Diploma or Showreel Course.

Try Multiple Monologues 

When selecting your monologue you might have a preference for something that you are already attached to, this could be a favourite piece from a movie or something that you have performed in the past. While this could be the right choice for you, it’s always good to keep your options open. Just because you have an emotional attachment to a piece it doesn’t necessarily mean that you can translate that emotion to those who you are performing to.

Play To Your Strengths

The first step in picking a monologue is knowing your strengths, the genre of the piece that you go with plays a huge part in making sure your audition is successful. An audition is about putting your best foot forward so you want the first impression you give to be the strongest it possibly can be. Doing a comedy monologue because you want to show you have range doesn’t always work if you can’t pull it off or if this is the first time the people auditioning have seen you perform. Find what produces the best results for you and work to make that stand out to others!

Do Your Research

The process of picking the right monologue starts at the ideation phase.  While the performance is the most important part of the process, what piece you are performing is just as vital.  Is it age appropriate? Is it a well known piece? If so, do you want to be compared to the actor or actress that is also well known for performing it? Ask yourself all these questions when picking your monologue and you are sure to land on something that will amaze them.

Get Feedback

Nobody is perfect, and every performance can be improved. Once you have picked your monologue it’s time to practice, practice, practice. Not only should you know it inside and out, you should be performing it to family or friends as well. They can pick up on things that you can improve on, or give suggestions for things to try that may have never crossed your mind. No matter what, you want to be walking into the audition confident that you have explored all possibilities for the scene and that you are going to be performing the best version you can be.

Timing It

It might seem obvious but timing and making sure your monologue runs within a concise time can often be overlooked. While you are practicing your piece make sure you are also checking the time it takes to perform. Some auditions may have limits on how short or long the piece is. In those that give you free reign you want to make sure your monologue isn’t either too short that you can’t give a lasting impression, or too long that the people watching the performance just switch off.

The final thing which isn’t really a tip per se, is to just do it.
If you are having thoughts about going for a role or even a course like the ones we have here at Screenwise.
Give it a go.
You are going to get knocked back for a lot of roles throughout your career as an actor but you can’t start getting them until you start going for them.

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