A Monologue is an Outrageous Situation!

Table of contents

1. Cover
2. Half Title
3. Title Page
4. Copyright Page
5. Dedication
6. Epigraph
7. Table of Contents
8. Acknowledgments
9. Introduction
   1. What Is a Monologue?
10. PART I Picking Your Monologue
    1. 1 An Outrageous Situation
    2. 2 The Sixty-Second Dilemma
    3. 3 What to Look for in a Monologue
       1. Your Type
       2. What You Do Best
       3. A Role You Can Play Now
       4. Age-Appropriate
       5. Comedic or Dramatic?
       6. Who Is Your Audience?
       7. What Roles Are Being Cast?
    4. 4 What to Avoid in a Monologue
       1. The ‘Challenge Yourself’ Monologue
       2. The Accent Monologue
       3. The Internet Monologue
       4. The ‘Role You Have Played Before’ Monologue
       5. The Phone-Call Monologue
       6. The ‘Feel Sorry for Yourself’ Monologue
       7. The ‘Whining and Complaining’ Monologue
       8. The ‘What a Screw-up I Am’ Monologue
       9. The Dirty-Word Monologue
       10. The ‘Too Much out of Context’ Monologue
       11. The Screenplay Monologue
       12. The One-Person-Show Monologue
       13. The Monologue You Wrote
       14. The ‘Big Pay-Off at the End’ Monologue
       15. The Shakespeare Monologue
       16. The Pre-Twentieth-Century Monologue
       17. The ‘Remembering the Past’ Monologue
       18. Summary of “Picking Your Monologue”
11. PART II Working on Your Monologue
    1. 5 Getting Started
       1. Step One: Read the Play
       2. Step Two: What Are the Given Circumstances?
       3. Step Three: “Three Tips” from the Script
       4. Step Four: Ask the Stanislavski Questions
       5. Step Five: Memorize!
    2. 6 Cutting and Piecing Together Your Monologue
       1. Piecing Together a Monologue from a Longer Scene
    3. 7 Get on Your Feet
       1. Blocking and How to Move (Because You Must Move)
       2. Body Language
       3. Don’t Use a Chair
       4. Don’t Mime
       5. Beginning, Middle and End
          1. Beginning
          2. Middle
          3. End
       6. What Your Audition Must Be About
          1. 1. Fighting for Something
          2. 2. Opposites
          3. 3. You at Your Best
          4. 4. Love
    4. 8 Exercises to Get Outrageous
       1. Actions
       2. For Monologues that Are Dramatic …
       3. For Monologues that Are Comedic …
       4. Exercises
          1. Exercise #1: Every Line Is a New Discovery
          2. Exercise #2: Rooting for ‘Gold’
          3. Exercise #3: Make Them Believe You!
          4. Exercise #4: ‘Vowel thru’’ Your Monologue
          5. Exercise #5: Shout, Then Whisper
          6. Exercise #6: Sing, Then Ha!
          7. Exercise #7: Hit the Deck!
          8. Exercise #8: One-Word Beat Change
          9. Exercise #9: Become the Monologue
          10. Exercise #10: Beginning, Middle, End
    5. 9 Monologue Pitfalls and What to Do about Them
       1. Summary of “Working on Your Monologue”
12. PART III Performing Your Monologue
    1. 10 And Don’t Forget …
       1. If You Decide to Use a Chair
       2. Placing Your Scene Partner
       3. Where Has Your Character Just Been?
       4. Where Are You Going?
       5. Speaking a Soliloquy
       6. Up Good, Down Bad
       7. Unintentional Hiding
       8. Rushing
       9. Don’t Try to Be Funny
       10. Crying and Yelling Is Not Dramatic
       11. Go Somewhere and Take Us with You
       12. If in Doubt about Your Choices
       13. When to Stop Your Monologue
    2. 11 Audition!
       1. What the Sixty-Second Monologue Must Do
       2. How Much Can They Really See in Sixty Seconds?
       3. Dress and Hygiene
          1. For Men
          2. For Women
       4. Final Clothing Thoughts
       5. Tattoos
       6. The Audition Step by Step
          1. Step One: Entrance
          2. Step Two: Find Your Light
          3. Step Three: Go to Center
          4. Step Four: Focus Points
             1. The Actual People in the Audition Room
             2. Your Imaginary Scene Partner
          5. Step Five: Announce your Name and Number
          6. Step Six: Perform
          7. Step Seven: Finish
          8. Step Eight: Repeat your Name and Number, and Exit
       7. When Does the Audition End?
       8. What Directors Want to See at a Callback
       9. What Is It Like to Audition?
       10. Summary of “Performing Your Monologue”
13. PART IV “Just a Few Notes for You”
    1. 12 Rehearsal Notes
       1. Make the Visceral Choice
       2. Need the Other Person
       3. You Don’t Have to Look at Your Scene Partner All the Time
       4. Negative
       5. ‘Kind of’ Choices Lead to ‘Kind of’ Acting
       6. To ‘Get Information’ Is Not Specific Enough
       7. To ‘Get Respect’ Is Not Strong Enough
       8. Do Not Fear “I Don’t Know!”
       9. ‘Over the Top’ and Doing ‘Too Much’
       10. Playing Emotion
       11. Explode or Lose It?
       12. Realism Is Not Real
       13. But I Can’t Do It That Way because My Line Says This!
       14. Your Acting Makes Dialogue Realistic
       15. Meet the Play on Its Terms
       16. Rehearsal Clothes Help You Play Period Style
       17. Roll Up Your Sleeves!
    2. 13 Performance Notes
       1. There Is Never a Fourth Wall
       2. Hold for Laughter
       3. In the Moment
       4. Playing Crowd Noise
       5. Don’t Look Down for Too Long – Even into a Grave
       6. Let the Audience Do the Feeling
       7. Stage Whisper
       8. Always Finish the Un-finished Line
       9. The Exit Line
       10. Play a Comedy like a Tragedy …
       11. Playing Age
       12. Acting with an Accent
       13. Playing the Rich
       14. Playing Royalty
       15. Playing a Hero when You’re Supposed to be a Hero
    3. 14 Director’s Notes
       1. “Pick It Up”
       2. Act on the Line
       3. Your Actual Cue in a Scene
       4. Listening
       5. Earning a Pause
       6. “Less Is More”
       7. “Just Say It”
       8. Consonants and Ends of Words
       9. How to Play the Nonsense Words
       10. Cheat Out
       11. Commenting on a Role
       12. A Role You Have Played Before
       13. ‘Doing Too Much’ Is a Good Note
       14. When You Don’t Get a Note, That’s Good, Too
       15. Don’t Get the Same Note Twice
       16. “Louder, Faster, Funnier”
    4. 15 Talent
       1. Summary of “Just a Few Notes for You”
14. Epilogue
15. Glossary
16. Appendixes
    1. A Monologue Suggestions
    2. B Where to Find Monologues
    3. C Unified Auditions
    4. D Headshot and Résumé Production
    5. E Actor’s Résumé Template
17. Index