The Monologue Slam, Gabrielle Coates
The monologue slam is an annual competition where multiple students audition with their best monologues to win a prize of £50. This is where those who are passionate about acting can feel free to express themselves outside of lessons. I interviewed one of our fellow students, Lashana Thomas regarding her experience and thoughts towards the show. What made you want to audition for Monologue Slam? ‘I am really passionate about the subject drama and I was encouraged by my drama teacher to try it. Furthermore, i wanted to audition for it again after not getting through last year. What was the process like of preparing for the final show? ‘ First of all I had to learn my monologue and research the context behind it so I could effectively play the character. Also, I had to find out about the aboriginal culture as my character was a Murri woman from Australia. Then I had to practice doing my monologue in the theatre so my teacher could give me feedback and work on my projection. At times in the beginning I struggled with showing my internal rage of that character because even though it was a comedy there was serious elements to it. However, i overcame that by practicing independently and think about personal experiences i have had as a black female and embed that into my monologue.’ How did you feel about the outcome of the show? ‘The outcome of the show was very good because the audience were very supportive, it went smoothly and there were no technical problems. In addition everyone’s monologue was performed very well with no mistakes.’ Overall, the show was a success and everyone who took part did a great job.
