So first, a quick note! I will be taking a few days off from the awesomely fun Musical Theatre Challenge since I'm visiting my home town for a couple days and won't have internet. Weeeeee! But, I'll be back. I figure it's ok if the 30 day challenge takes 33 days, right? DON'T JUDGE ME!! Heh heh...anyway...
Now....a rant:
Monologue hunting is a challenge. Yes, a big ugly whopping smelly challenge. If you spend enough time acting in the theatre world, you get yourself a whole collection of monologues that you can rattle off the moment that random casting director that you happen to bump into at Safeway says "go!". (Yeah...like that actually happens...) I, myself, have tons of monologues. Contemporary, classical, dramatic, comedic, all sorts of styles from all sorts of shows. AND YET, I still don't have enough monologues under my belt. Let's take my next two auditions as an example. One requires two one-minute contrasting contemporary monologues. I have a one-minute comedic monologue, and yet somehow I have come to realize that I don't have a one-minute dramatic monologue. How did that happen? How do I have tons of monologues in my brain ready to jump out at you.....but I don't have a one-minute dramatic contemporary monologue?! What?!?! I have one that's 90 seconds. I have two that are 2 minutes...but not a single solitary 60 second champ hiding under my belt. Curses I say.....curses!!! Now, let's look at audition number two. Audition number two requires one monologue that is ideally 90 seconds and 16 bars of a folk song, hymn, etc... The song? Not a problem. The monologue however needs to be a very specific style for this particular audition. I happen to have a monologue that fits the style very well, but guess what! It's 2 minutes long. Meaning I need to cut out about 30 seconds from said monologue. Sigh. Easier said than done my friend, easier said...then done.
Now, I love being an actor. I love working on monologues and getting better at my craft. But the point still stands...MONOLOGUE HUNTING IS HARD. You have to find the appropriate style, the right length, the right tone, the right era, the right dialect.....etc...while still considering your own personal strengths and weaknesses as an actor and knowing when to challenge yourself and when it's the wrong choice for you. Then, also consider that the people who are watching these monologues a.) have an opinion (duh), and b.) have probably heard SO MANY monologues in their career that you have to make sure that you don't choose a way over done monologue that they've seen a million times while knowing that if they have seen your monologue done before, you have to rock it twice as hard so they're not bored out of their senses.
That being said....I need to go get off me arse and go find a 60 second dramatic contemporary monologue. Oh, and I should probably actually drive to my hometown now as well. Phew....procrastination man..it'll get ya.
Now....a rant:
Monologue hunting is a challenge. Yes, a big ugly whopping smelly challenge. If you spend enough time acting in the theatre world, you get yourself a whole collection of monologues that you can rattle off the moment that random casting director that you happen to bump into at Safeway says "go!". (Yeah...like that actually happens...) I, myself, have tons of monologues. Contemporary, classical, dramatic, comedic, all sorts of styles from all sorts of shows. AND YET, I still don't have enough monologues under my belt. Let's take my next two auditions as an example. One requires two one-minute contrasting contemporary monologues. I have a one-minute comedic monologue, and yet somehow I have come to realize that I don't have a one-minute dramatic monologue. How did that happen? How do I have tons of monologues in my brain ready to jump out at you.....but I don't have a one-minute dramatic contemporary monologue?! What?!?! I have one that's 90 seconds. I have two that are 2 minutes...but not a single solitary 60 second champ hiding under my belt. Curses I say.....curses!!! Now, let's look at audition number two. Audition number two requires one monologue that is ideally 90 seconds and 16 bars of a folk song, hymn, etc... The song? Not a problem. The monologue however needs to be a very specific style for this particular audition. I happen to have a monologue that fits the style very well, but guess what! It's 2 minutes long. Meaning I need to cut out about 30 seconds from said monologue. Sigh. Easier said than done my friend, easier said...then done.
Now, I love being an actor. I love working on monologues and getting better at my craft. But the point still stands...MONOLOGUE HUNTING IS HARD. You have to find the appropriate style, the right length, the right tone, the right era, the right dialect.....etc...while still considering your own personal strengths and weaknesses as an actor and knowing when to challenge yourself and when it's the wrong choice for you. Then, also consider that the people who are watching these monologues a.) have an opinion (duh), and b.) have probably heard SO MANY monologues in their career that you have to make sure that you don't choose a way over done monologue that they've seen a million times while knowing that if they have seen your monologue done before, you have to rock it twice as hard so they're not bored out of their senses.
That being said....I need to go get off me arse and go find a 60 second dramatic contemporary monologue. Oh, and I should probably actually drive to my hometown now as well. Phew....procrastination man..it'll get ya.
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