A single performer plays one dramatic character alone, from a play or script, entered by age and marked on how truthfully the part is played.
Dramatic Monologue is a solo class in which one performer takes a serious or emotionally charged character and delivers that character's speech alone. The word "dramatic" separates it from comic, humorous or verse-speaking classes: the piece is expected to carry real stakes, such as grief, fear, anger, guilt or a hard decision, and the performer is judged on making those stakes believable rather than on reciting words.
The round itself is brief. The entrant is called in, announces the title and author of the piece, and then performs it, usually from memory and usually without scenery. In the festival syllabi we build from, the time limit rises with age, from four minutes for the youngest classes to five or six minutes for older and adult entrants, and the classes are divided into several age bands so that a nine-year-old is never marked against an adult. One of those syllabi marks its list as non-Shakespeare, which tells entrants that a separate class exists for classical text.
An entry is one named performer, one chosen piece and one age class. The text may come from a published play, a monologue collection or other suitable script, cut to fit the limit. The entrant will normally be asked to state the piece in advance on the entry form, and the adjudicator may compare the length of the cut with the time actually used.
Organisers keep this class because it shows, more plainly than almost any other, whether a young actor can hold a room with nothing but voice, body and imagination. It also costs little to run: one performer, one slot and one panel, which suits festivals that need to fit many entrants into a short speech and drama section.
Where Dramatic Monologue is run
In eTalenter's data Dramatic Monologue is carried by five templates: two English festival speech and drama sections, a Canadian district arts festival, a drama and dance festival and a school competition. The English festivals divide it into five to eight age classes with limits of four to six minutes. Near-identical solo classes run under other names, such as Acting Monologue and Mono Act, at festivals and school events worldwide; the catalogue keeps them separate because age bands and limits differ.
- United Kingdom - England (competitive festival speech and drama sections)
- Canada (district arts festival template)
- Schools and drama festivals using the same solo format
Key facts
- Solo entry: one performer, one character, usually performed from memory.
- Entered by age class; the English syllabi we build from run from about 7 years old up to an adult 19-and-over class.
- Typical limits in those syllabi: 4 minutes for the youngest classes, rising to 5 or 6 minutes for older and adult entrants.
- The paired class, Dramatic Duologue, is a separate catalogue item: two performers instead of one.
- One overall mark per performance, awarded by the adjudicator, with placings First, Second and Third.
- Idea starters, not rules: a soldier's last letter home, a witness deciding whether to tell the truth, a teenager confronting a parent, or a character receiving news by telephone.
On eTalenter, Dramatic Monologue is filed under Action, Drama and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 5 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Dramatic Monologue is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 10, commonly time-limited to 2–13 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Dramatic Monologue
What a Dramatic Monologue panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Truthfulness of the character: the performer believes the situation, so the audience does too, with no indicating or over-acting.
- Emotional range and build: the piece moves somewhere, with shifts of mood and a climax, instead of staying at one level from start to finish.
- Voice and diction: clear, audible and varied, with breath control that lets the quiet moments carry as well as the loud ones.
- Command of text and time: lines are secure, pauses are deliberate, and the piece ends inside the limit without a rushed final line.
- Suitability of the piece: a speech with real dramatic content that fits the performer's age and is cut with a clear beginning, turn and ending.
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Dramatic Monologue under Scoring Setup, or start from the full mono act judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Dramatic Monologue
How entrants and their teachers usually get Dramatic Monologue right on the day:
- Read the whole play first so you know who the character is talking to, what has just happened and what they want.
- Cut the speech to the class time limit with a stopwatch and choose an ending that feels complete, not cut off.
- Write two sentences in your own words: who am I speaking to, and what do I need from them? Return to them each rehearsal.
- Learn the words until they are automatic, then rehearse with movement kept small; one or two meaningful moves beat constant pacing.
- Mark where the mood changes and practise those turns, because that is where marks for range are won.
- Perform to a small audience, ideally someone who does not know the play, and ask what they understood.
- On the day, state title and author clearly, pause before the first word and hold the last moment before leaving.
- Check which age class applies on the syllabus's qualifying date, since it may differ from your age on the festival day.
Frequently asked questions
Is Dramatic 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 is the difference between Dramatic Monologue and Acting Monologue?
Both are one performer playing one character alone. Dramatic Monologue suggests a serious or emotionally weighty piece, and festivals band and time the two classes differently, so eTalenter keeps them as separate items.
Can I use a Shakespeare speech?
It depends on the syllabus. One festival we draw on lists this class as non-Shakespeare, with classical text entered elsewhere, so read the class description before choosing your piece.
How long can my monologue be?
The limit is set by your age class. In the syllabi we build from it is four minutes for the youngest entrants, rising to five or six minutes for older and adult classes. Going over may be penalised.
Is it judged on acting or on the words?
On the performance. The adjudicator marks characterisation, emotional truth, voice and control of the piece. Choosing a suitable piece helps, but the playwright's quality is not what is scored.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full mono act judging criteria guide, or browse every action competition item.
Try Dramatic Monologue in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Dramatic Monologue, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
