A solo drama class in which one older learner performs a single character's speech drawn from a classical text, judged on how well the language is understood and spoken, how convincingly the character is played and how neatly the piece fits a five-minute limit.
Classical Monologue is a solo class in which one performer presents a speech for a single character taken from a classical play, rather than from modern writing. Classical speeches are usually in heightened language, often in verse or in an older prose style, so the performer has two jobs at once: make the meaning of unfamiliar phrasing plain to a listener, and still play a living person who wants something. The performer stands alone, normally with no scenery and little or no costume, and the language itself carries the setting.
In the one schedule we build from, a South African drama eisteddfod held in Pretoria, the class is published for a single tier only: Grades 8 to 12, built here as ages 14 to 18, with a five-minute maximum. It is an individual entry for boys and girls together, spoken in English. The same schedule's modern monologue and multimedia monologue classes run from Grade 3 upwards, so the classical class is the one that is held back for the oldest school learners. The schedule does not define what it counts as classical, so entrants should read their own syllabus for the accepted period or list of playwrights.
A round runs like any other monologue class. The performer is called, announces the title of the piece and the character, takes a moment to settle and then performs for no longer than five minutes. The adjudicator marks the performance and, in most eisteddfods of this kind, adds spoken or written advice. A performer who has cut a long speech down to its strongest argument and speaks it as thought, not as a recital, will usually stand out from one who recites every line at the same pace.
Organisers keep a classical class because it gives older learners something harder to aim for than a modern speech. It rewards reading, patience with difficult text and breath control, and it is a natural stepping stone for learners who go on to study drama, take speech and drama examinations or audition for theatre courses. Because only one grade tier exists, entry numbers are usually smaller and the class is quick to schedule alongside the other monologue classes.
Where Classical Monologue is run
In eTalenter's data the class appears in one template: the English-language monologue classes of a drama eisteddfod held in Pretoria, South Africa, where it is entered at a single Grade 8-12 tier. Classical or period-text monologues are a familiar part of the British-style eisteddfod and festival tradition and of speech and drama examinations, but this particular class, its single tier and its five-minute limit come from that one South African schedule, so it should not be read as a worldwide standard.
- South Africa (Pretoria, Gauteng - English-language drama eisteddfod)
Key facts
- Individual entry: one performer per entry, boys and girls together, in English.
- A single tier only: Grades 8-12, built here as ages 14 to 18, with no younger or open division published.
- Maximum time is five minutes, counted per performer; the schedule's modern monologue class shares the same five minutes at this tier.
- Marks are installed on a nominal ten-point scale because the syllabus does not print a points table or criteria for the class.
- Entered alongside Contemporary Monologue and Multimedia Monologue in the same schedule, which both run from Grade 3 upwards.
- Idea starters, not rules: a defiant or persuading speech from a period tragedy, a comic servant's or fool's address to the audience, or a verse speech in which a character argues with themselves. Always check your own syllabus for what counts as classical.
On eTalenter, Classical Monologue is filed under Action and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Classical Monologue is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 10, commonly time-limited to around 5 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Classical Monologue
What a Classical Monologue panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Understanding of the language: the performer clearly knows what every line means, so the audience can follow an argument written in older or heightened phrasing without a footnote.
- Verse and phrasing: sentences are shaped by their sense, not chopped at the end of each line or rushed through, and the key word of each thought is landed.
- Character and situation: the speaker is a person who wants something from someone at this moment, with a clear opening mood and a change by the end, rather than an actor delivering fine words.
- Voice and breath: five minutes of demanding text asks for steady breathing, a range of pace and volume and endings that are finished, so the last row hears as well as the first.
- Choice and cutting of the piece: the speech suits an age 14 to 18 performer, is cut into a shape with a beginning, a turn and a close, and fits five minutes without a hurried last page.
- Memory and stage discipline: lines are secure, the entrance and opening line are calm, and the performer holds a final stillness before leaving instead of breaking character the moment the words run out.
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Classical Monologue under Scoring Setup, or start from the full mono act judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Classical Monologue
How entrants and their teachers usually get Classical Monologue right on the day:
- Start by choosing a speech you can paraphrase in plain modern English, line by line; if you cannot say what a sentence means in your own words, the audience will not understand it either.
- Read the whole play, not just the speech, so you know who the character is talking to, what has just happened and what will go wrong next, then write one sentence about what the character wants.
- Time the speech with a stopwatch and cut it to about four minutes forty so that you can take a breath before the first line and hold a pause at the end; trim repeated images before you trim the argument.
- Mark the text with pencil for breaths, for the word that carries each thought and for the point where the character changes tactic, and learn the words from the marked copy until the marks live in your head.
- Say the speech aloud as if you were explaining it to a friend before you add any performance; then add volume and shape, and only add movement where the character would move.
- If it is verse, practise the rhythm by tapping it, then break the pattern deliberately where the sense demands it, so that the beat supports the meaning and does not take it over.
- Perform for someone who has not read the play and ask them to tell you the story of the speech; every place they were lost is a sentence you need to speak more clearly or cut.
- On the day, announce the title and character, pause until you are settled, fix your eyes just above the audience and keep your last stillness for a slow count of three before you leave.
Frequently asked questions
Is Classical Monologue judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter's templates it's most often run as an Individual entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
What counts as a classical monologue?
In general it means a speech from an older play, often in verse or in heightened prose, such as a speech from a Greek tragedy, a Shakespeare play or a comedy of manners from a past century. The Pretoria schedule we build from does not define the term, so read your own syllabus for the accepted period or authors before you choose.
How long can a classical monologue be?
In the South African schedule the maximum is five minutes at the Grades 8-12 tier, which is the only tier published for this class. The time is counted per performer and is a maximum, so a shorter piece is fine; check what your own festival does when a speech runs over.
Why is there only one age group?
The source schedule publishes the class for Grades 8 to 12 only, while its modern and multimedia monologue classes start at Grade 3. We have built it exactly as printed and have not added invented tiers for younger learners. If your festival offers more, add the groups it prints.
Is it judged individually or as a team?
Individually. One performer is on the stage, the adjudicator marks that performer alone, and boys and girls enter together.
Can I use a prop, costume or music?
The schedule we build from does not print rules for props or costume in this class, and recorded sound or images belong to its separate Multimedia Monologue class. Check your own syllabus; in general a classical monologue works best with at most a chair and a performer who builds the world with voice and eyes.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full mono act judging criteria guide, or browse every action competition item.
Try Classical Monologue in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Classical Monologue, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
