Practice Monologs: Shakespeare

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Shakespeare is easy to do poorly (at least for me). I have great respect for those trained in this kind of thing, which I am not. But you don’t have to be a graduate of the Royal Shakespeare Academy to enjoy and learn from the brilliant Bard.

Shakespeare can be intimidating or confusing. But the more you dig to understand the meaning of his text– the context of the scene, the word play, the innuendos and metaphors and how the poetry of how the language is best read– the more clear and meaningful it becomes.

If you know the story of his play, understand the context and stakes in the scene and have maybe seen some good performances of it, you can begin to get at the beauty and power in his language. See it on stage or in a movie and it may help. The Bard is the gold standard for language and acting.

I read through his plays out lout for fun and to strengthen my diction and long-form reading stamina. I hope you have fun with these monologues too!