The Perfect Monologue: How to Find and Perform the Monologue That Will Get You the Part (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: perfect monologue, encouraging squeeze, previous scene, Madame Rosepettle, The Commodore, Margaret Mary (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Finally, a book on monologs that is more than an anthology. Friedman presents not just a selection of monologs to choose from, she teaches actors how to create one. An accomplished casting director, actress, and acting teacher, Friedman provides clear, concise instructions on how to handle an audition, detailing the pitfalls the actor may encounter in searching for a monolog, or in acting one out, and offering solutions. Next, she provides a series of scenes from many well-known plays often overdone at auditions and adapts these scenes into refreshing, vibrant monologs with a keen eye to what will serve the actor best. She also gives a short, insightful explanation of what each piece needs in terms of acting it. Michael Shurtleff's foreword (his own book, Audi tion: Everything an Actor Needs To Know To Get the Part , LJ 4/1/78, became a bible of the industry) states that "this book could revolutionize the practice of using monologues for auditions . . . ." This reviewer is inclined to agree.
- Gary R. Ramsey, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

In this companion volume to her highly successful Callback, Ginger Howard Friedman, a veteran casting director, playwright and teacher, reveals her winning formula for a monologue audition that lands you the part. She explains her essential rules for a successful audition, then selects scenes from 16 plays and adapts them into monologues, comic and serious, for men and women of all ages.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 376 pages
• Publisher: Limelight Editions (August 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879103000
• ISBN-13: 978-0879103002
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #537,429 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed, September 12, 2000

By	Stephen Lewis (SLC, UT) - See all my reviews

I expected more from this book. I don't know who all of Mrs. Friedman's students have been but I do know that Willem Dafoe trained with her. I didn't feel that I needed 200 pages or so to show me how to lift a monologue from a scene. The way she composed most of the monologues was pretty bad also.

I do, however, think that it is important to show beginning actors how to compose a monologue from existing material. Also, her personalization exercises(i.e. words and pictures) were fairly weak. I think that The Monologue Workshop by Jack Poggi is a bit of a better book. The bad thing about books like this is that they try to cram imformation about monologue work and an entire course on acting into one book. That just doesn't work. Another book that's pretty good is Larry Silverburg's book Loving to Audition.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Eh, borrow if from someone, it's not worth buying, August 7, 2000

By A Customer

This book covers some basic info on the "monologue" and has many interesting pages about monologues and the audition process. The monologues aren't that great and it's not worth the effort to study them. I hope this helps...

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Well....., June 30, 2000

By A Customer

When I bought this book, I think I expected more than what I got... It was somewhat helpful... There are actually only about 30 pages of info on monologues. The rest is just a bunch of worthless scenes from old plays.