The 30-Minute Shakespeare Anthology. William Shakespeare
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MONOLOGUE CHARACTER: Prospero, male
MONOLOGUE THEME: The virtue of forgiveness
27 lines
TWELFTH NIGHT: ACT II, SCENE IV
Three male characters and one female character; possible narrator
MONOLOGUE CHARACTER: Viola, female (disguised as Cesario, male)
MONOLOGUE THEME: how women love
15 lines
THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA: ACT II, SCENE IV
Two male characters and one female character; possible narrator
MONOLOGUE CHARACTER: Proteus, male
MONOLOGUE THEME: a new lover’s image pushes out a present lover
23 lines
PERFORMING MONOLOGUES
START ORGANICALLY
I recommend reading the speech silently and then reading it aloud to yourself. After you do this, read it out loud again, maybe experimenting with dynamics such as softening your voice when you feel the text calls for it and then speaking louder and with greater emphasis when the spirit moves you. Listen to how the words sound. How do the words feel physically and emotionally as you speak them?
Don’t worry initially about what everything in the text means. Just speak the words and be curious as to what your character is saying, how she feels, and what story she is telling. That is what I mean by “start organically.” Don’t rush to the dictionary, the notes to the play, or a video of the performance. Researching a role is an important part of the process, but I recommend you start with your own unique curiosity. You are the one who will be bringing himself to the role, so start alone.
STUDY THE TEXT
Next, look more carefully at the words on the page. Print out your monologue and pick up a pencil. (You can find easily editable copies of Shakespeare’s plays at www.folgerdigitaltexts.com.) Circle the words you have questions about. If you don’t know what a word means, take a guess based on its sound or appearance. Look at its context. Based on other lines that your character speaks, what might it mean? Then look it up in the dictionary. See if its etymology, or origin, comes from another word. Be curious! Each word is a piece of the puzzle that is a Shakespearean speech.
I recommend the notes to the Folger Shakespeare Library editions of the plays. They are informative and insightful. In addition to providing definitions of what these words meant in Shakespeare’s time, they also explain the longer historical, literary, mythological, and religious references that Shakespeare uses. The more time you spend studying the minutia of the text, the better your stage interpretation will be. It’s exciting work because you know that everything you learn, you can then put into your performance!
STUDY PERFORMANCES
There are numerous recordings of Shakespeare’s plays readily available for viewing. Whether on YouTube, PBS, cable or satellite TV, streaming sites, or apps, the twenty-first century has provided us a wealth of astounding Shakespeare performances. Use the resources available to you, and study how great actors have rendered your monologue. Study the bad ones, too! Figure out what works for you and what doesn’t.
It is extremely important to watch more than one rendition. You don’t want to parrot somebody else’s performance. Shakespeare has been performed so many different ways that you can access a wealth of different interpretations to inform your work. At the end of each Monologue Notes, I have included suggested films and recordings to watch, and there are many others at your fingertips. If you have an opportunity to see an actual live performance of a Shakespeare play at some point, so much the better! Videos are great tools, but there is no substitute for experiencing a live performance of a Shakespeare play, whether by students, amateurs, or professionals.
THE TEXT
WORDS AND PHRASES
Throughout the Monologue Notes, I refer to “coloring” words. When you speak a word, try to imbue it with the emotion or attitude of the speaker. Some words lend themselves more to coloring than others. Pick particularly evocative words and do not gloss over them. Great Shakespearean actors milk the sound of the words for all they are worth. A properly colored word can hang in the air like a painted masterpiece and give richness to the text and your performance. There are numerous example of this in the Monologue Notes.
Aside from choosing words to color, you must choose key words to emphasize. Study a Shakespearean actor’s performance. You will notice that in any given line, there is a word or phrase that is stressed. It is given more punch than other words in the sentence. Experiment by reciting your lines out loud, emphasizing a different word or phrase until you arrive at your own portrayal. Just one change in emphasis can alter the meaning or tone of a speech.
RHYTHM
Many of the monologues in this collection are written in iambic pentameter. Make sure you know which monologues feature this rhythm:
But mercy is above this sceptered sway.
It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings
(Portia from The Merchant of Venice, Act IV, Scene I)
Often when a line is one beat longer, for example, it presents an opportunity for you as an actor to capitalize on that change by adjusting your delivery. I learned from my colleague Michael Tolaydo, Professor of Theatre, Film, and Media Studies at St. Mary’s College of Maryland, that the iambic pentameter rhythm is like a heartbeat: ba-bum ba-bum ba-bum ba-bum ba-bum. When the iambic pentameter structure is disrupted, perhaps the character’s heart skips a beat, and he has an emotional reaction that informs the speech. Look into the rhythm carefully, and when it varies, see if you need to change with it.
Feel the iambic pentameter, but do not fall into the habit of stopping your words at the end of each line. Speak them as sentences, naturally. This can be a challenge with longer lines since you may run out of breath before the end of a passage. Carry the vocal energy to the end of the sentence. To do this, you will have to find beats in the text.
BEATS
A “beat” is a pause in your speech. Proper use of beats can turn an ordinary monologue performance into a great one. Not only does the “beat” allow the actor to present a dynamic speech, but it also gives your character the opportunity to process the words and absorb them internally before moving on to the next phrase. Give the audience a chance to watch your character think and respond emotionally to what she is saying. A well-placed beat gives the speech shape and nuance. Go through your monologue with a pencil and draw a line wherever you want a beat. When you observe other performances, notice where the actor pauses. Just as in great music, the silence between the words in a Shakespeare monologue can speak volumes.
PERFORMANCE
TURNING POINTS
A great monologue has a beginning, middle, and end. As the actor, you must determine where the turning points are. The Monologue Notes in this book will help you identify these moments. You might discover instances where the mood shifts and the character takes on a new attitude or makes a new discovery. Perhaps the first part of the monologue is a question, and the second part is an answer. Maybe the mood moves from hate to love or from despair to hope. Study the text and watch performances, then experiment on your own to see if you can unearth a turning point to give your speech a dramatic arc. Your character undergoes a change in the speech, and you will want the audience to see this.
MOVEMENT
Movements and gestures in a monologue should not be forced. At the same time, you cannot speak your monologue completely still (unless the text calls for it, of course). The best movements are motivated by the text and can range from a simple hand gesture