Creating Your Own Monologue PA

The second edition of this popular guide shows beginning and experienced actors how to use their acting skills to write, rehearse, and perform successful audition monologues, performance art pieces, and one-person plays. The process is explained in easy-to-follow steps and includes excerpts from critically acclaimed monologues. Learn how to: Develop well-rounded characters, Write convincing dialogue, Organize, rewrite, and edit your material, Choose and work with the right director, Polish your performance onstage, Market your solo show

Glenn Alterman, a playwright, screenwriter, author, and actor, is also one of the
country’s foremost monologue and audition coaches. He has written several books, including Promoting Your Acting Career. He lives in New York City.

Acknowledgments

xv

Introduction to the Second Edition

xvii

Introduction

xix

Six Ways to Get the Most Out of This Book

xxiii

Part I the monologue: writing, rehearsing, performing

1. A Definition of Terms

3

(5)

What Is a Monologue?

3

(1)

Types of Monologues

4

(2)

What Is Performance Art?

6

(2)

2. A Brief History of the One-Person Show

8

(4)

Samuel Foote (1721-1777) Creates the One-Person Show

8

(1)

George Alexander Stevens, the Father of the Monologue

8

(1)

Charles Mathews

9

(1)

Ruth Draper Perfects the Monologue

9

(1)

Cornelia Otis Skinner

10

(1)

Historical Monologues

10

(1)

The Solo Show Today

10

(2)

3. A Preliminary Look

12

(4)

Questions to Ask Yourself before Starting Work on a Solo Show

12

(1)

The Similarities/Differences between Being an Actor and Working as a Writer

13

(1)

As an Actor, Do I Have the Necessary Skills to Create My Own Material?

14

(1)

Pluses and Minuses, Assessing Specifically Where You Are Now

14

(1)

Your Sense of Truth

15

(1)

4. Ways to Work, Selecting Your Tools

16

(5)

Writing

16

(1)

What Is Creative Writing?

17

(1)

Fear of Writing

17

(1)

Journal Writing

18

(1)

Using a Tape Recorder

18

(1)

Improvising: "Are You Talkin' to Me?"

19

(1)

Working Orally: In Front of an Audience

19

(1)

Working Orally: Developing Your Stories Throughout the Day

20

(1)

5. Preparing

21

(4)

For Those Actors Who Know Which Type (Style) of Monologue They Want to Create

21

(1)

For Those Actors Who Don't Know What Type of Solo Material They Want to Create

22

(1)

Perking with an Idea

23

(1)

Exercises to Help You with Your Solo Show, by Cheryl King

23

(1)

Deciding When to Begin

24

(1)

6. Guidelines for Creating Short or Audition Monologues

25

(3)

7. Fundamentals of All Good Monologues

28

(20)

To Whom Is the Character Speaking?

30

(1)

Questions Every Monologue Must Answer

30

(1)

About Autobiographical Monologues

31

(2)

Another Way to Approach Autobiographical Material, by Cheryl King

33

(1)

Storytelling Monologues

34

(1)

Narrative and Dramatic Style

34

(1)

Your Personal Style: Your Voice

35

(1)

Examples of Different Voices and Styles

36

(1)

From An Evening with Quentin Crisp by Quentin Crisp

36

(1)

Winfred from Monster by Dael Orlandersmith

37

(1)

Craig from Two Minutes and Under, Volume 3 by Glenn Alterman

38

(1)

From An Evening with Shelly Mars by Shelly Mars

39

(1)

From Gray's Anatomy by Spalding Gray

39

(1)

Cudjoe from The Sun and the Moon Live in the Sky by Ellen Lewis

40

(1)

From Safe by Taylor Mac

41

(1)

Sam from Jails, Hospitals & Hip-Hop by Danny Hoch

42

(1)

From Time on Fire by Evan Handler

43

(1)

From Comedy You Can Dance To by Kate Clinton

43

(1)

From Full Gallop by Mary Louise Wilson and Mark Hampton

44

(1)

From I'm Breathing the Water Now by Bashore Halow

45

(1)

From The Finger Hole by ty adams

46

(1)

From A Kiss to Build a Dream On by Joe Pintauro

47

(1)

8. Using Your Acting Technique to Create Character Monologues

48

(4)

Working from the Outside in, as an Actor and Writer

48

(1)

Working Internally as an Actor and Writer

49

(3)

9. Starting to Write

52

(9)

Two Scenarios

52

(1)

Understanding Writer's Block

53

(1)

Techniques for Dealing with Writer's Block

54

(1)

Nothing, a Whole Lot of Nothing

54

(1)

Writing about Painful Events

55

(1)

Free-Writing: An Invaluable Exercise

55

(3)

Clustering (or Webbing): Finding the Initial Core of Your Work

58

(1)

Sal from Street Talk: Character Monologues for Actors by Glenn Alterman

59

(2)

10. Creating Your Monologue: Structure and Process

61

(7)

How We'll Be Working from Now On

62

(1)

Comparing the Actor's and the Writer's Processes of Starting Out

62

(1)

The Importance of the Narrator

63

(1)

Your Opening Section: The First Paragraphs

63

(1)

From Charlotte by Penny Arcade (from True Stories)

64

(1)

Bernice from Two Minutes and Under, Volume 2 by Glenn Alterman

64

(1)

From Swimming to Cambodia by Spalding Gray

65

(1)

From Pretty Fire by Charlayne Woodard

65

(1)

Blanka from Some People by Danny Hoch

66

(1)

Jo from Eternal Pyramid by Anastasia Traina

66

(1)

Master of the Stale from the play The Dark String by ty adams

67

(1)

11. Developing Your Monologue

68

(5)

Developing Your Role (as an Actor)

68

(1)

Developing Your Monologue (as a Writer)

68

(1)

The Ongoing Day-to-Day Work

69

(1)

Working on Performance Art Pieces

70

(1)

A Word about Songs, Music, and Dance in Monologue Plays

70

(1)

Mixed Media

70

(1)

That Old Devil, the Self-Censor

71

(1)

Taking Mini-Breaks, Breathers

71

(1)

Looking Over What You've Written So Far

72

(1)

After the Break: Two Scenarios

72

(1)

Working Till the End of the First Draft

72

(1)

12. Developing Your Monologue II (The Ongoing Work)

73

(7)

The "Who Wrote This Monologue, and What's It About?" Exercise

73

(1)

Questions to Ask Yourself While Reading through Your Script

74

(1)

At What Point Should You Have Someone Else Read What You've Written?

74

(1)

Selecting the Right Person to Read Your Monologue

75

(1)

Performing the First Draft for a Director

75

(1)

Performing the First Draft as a "Work in Progress" for an Audience

76

(1)

Making Repairs: Rewriting

76

(1)

Revising and Reshaping

76

(1)

The Three Golden Rules of Revising

76

(3)

The Subconscious and Rewrites

79

(1)

13. Completing Work on Your Monologue

80

(3)

Things to Keep in Mind in Your Closing

80

(1)

Knowing When the Monologue Is Ready to Be Performed

81

(1)

A Checklist to Decide Whether Your Monologue Is Ready to Be Performed

81

(2)

14. Preparing to Perform

83

(4)

Selecting a Director

83

(1)

Working with the Director in Rehearsal

84

(1)

Rehearsing the Audition Monologue

85

(1)

Performing the Piece

86

(1)

15. Marketing Your Solo Show

87

(6)

Preparing Your Marketing Package

87

(2)

Management/Booking Agencies That Handle Solo Artists

89

Part II interviews with monologue writers and performers

16. Lanie Robertson

93

(6)

17. Sarah Jones

99

(4)

18. Spalding Gray

103

(4)

19. Mary Louise Wilson

107

(4)

20. Charlayne Woodard

111

(4)

21. Tim Miller

115

(4)

22. Danny Hoch

119

(5)

23. Dael Orlandersmith

124

(4)

24. Quentin Crisp

128

(3)

25. Marilyn Sokol

131

(3)

26. Evan Handler

134

(7)

27. Shelly Mars

141

(4)

28. Brian Dykstra

145

(6)

29. Penny Arcade

151

(5)

30. Kate Clinton

156

(4)

31. Ann Randolph

160

(7)

Part III interviews with directors of one-person shows

32. Peter Askin

167

(5)

33. Jo Bonney

172

(5)

34. Christopher Ashley

177

(6)

35. Marcia Jean Kurtz

183

(3)

36. David Bar Katz

186

(5)

Appendixes

A. Artist Colonies Where You Can Develop Your Solo Show

191

(4)

B. Theaters That Accept Solo Material

195

(7)

C. Publishers of Solo Material

202

(5)

D. Playwriting Competitions That Accept Solo Material

207

(5)

E. Applying for Grants

212

(3)

F. Literary Agents

215

(7)

G. Recommended Books

222

(1)

H. Internet Resources

223

(2)

Permissions

225

(2)

About the Author

227

(2)

Index

229

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Creating Your Own Monologue PA

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials