By Emma
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AUZ0XJnQ17s
Available until: Unknown
Content warning: (not a real spoiler, it’s in the video description) mentions of suicide
We have been retweeting Philip Pugh’s Actor Monologues for a while but this is the first time we are reviewing one. It won’t be the last. This is really good and I hope we’ll review them all eventually.
Amanda is talking about something terrible she witnessed when she was at a train station. Quite a bit of time has passed since then but it’s still affecting her. She thinks about it every day and it has changed her. It’s changed her feelings, her thoughts and her behaviour. Amanda was probably always a caring person but this incident has opened her eyes to how much some people really do suffer.
Philip Pugh has written this really well. The script sounds really convincing and believable. It says everything it needs to say and it’s very clear but it’s not too structured. It is written in a natural way for someone who is upset and hasn’t planned exactly what they’re going to say. It’s really moving and sad but it’s not too graphic. It’s actually a beautiful piece of writing and a really good idea for a monologue. It’s a really good challenge for an actor and it’s also the kind of situation where you would let someone talk and not interrupt them.
I usually like “died by suicide” better than “committed suicide” but this is a phrase not everyone knows and when you’re writing a monologue or any kind of play I think it is really important to use the character’s words. They don’t have to be your words and they don’t have to be the correct words. They have to be the right words for the character and the situation. When you see something like that, you’re going to be thinking about it a lot but you’re not going to be going online to check you’re phrasing is still politically correct, you’ll use the phrase you’ve always known. (There are exceptions, you don’t want to hear any racist or homophobic slurs unless it’s really important to the story but I think “committed suicide” is not offensive here.)
Caroline Oakes does a brilliant job of acting the monologue. She says the lines so well and so convincingly but the thing in her performance that really gets to me the most is her eyes. She looks haunted by what’s happened. She isn’t just saying the words, she’s feeling them and maybe she’s even seeing in her mind what her character saw and that makes me as her audience feel and see it too.
The Ripple Effect really is a great monologue and
I’m looking forward to watching more.
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