APPLICATION DEADLINE EXTENDED TO JANUARY 18th!!

True Colors announces the Second Annual August Wilson Monologue Competition directed by Associate Artistic Director, Todd Kreidler, and Education Consultant, Dr. Shondrika Moss-Bouldin. The second annual August Wilson Monologue Competition  is open to Atlanta area high school sophomores, juniors and seniors. The preliminaries will be held on February 11 and 12, at the 14th Street Playhouse. The finals are free and open to the public and will be held February 18, 8pm, also at The 14th Street Playhouse. The panels of judges for the prelims and the finals are members of the artistic community. The finals will be emceed by Kenny Leon.

We are also thrilled to be partnering with The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and launch the competition there in conjunction with The August Wilson Century Cycle. The three Atlanta winners will perform their monologues in Washington, D.C., at the finals of the D.C. competition at The Kennedy Center on April 6.

True Colors will host professional monologue coaching sessions for all student participants prior to the competition. In the final round, a winner, runner-up and honorable mention, will be chosen by the panel of judges, comprised of theater professionals from the Atlanta community, and scholarships will be awarded.

To participate, please download this application and submit accordingly.

August Wilson’s Century Cycle is a singular achievement in American theater. Each of the ten world-class plays is set in a different decade of the twentieth century. At the core of each work are soaring, lyrical monologues that take the song, the laughter, the pain, the rich content of African American life, and place it in the mouths of the greatest and most varied ensemble of characters written since Shakespeare. This monologue competition offers students of all races the opportunity to inhabit the lives and speak the words of these vital, lively characters.

Competition Details
Competition is open to Sophomores, Juniors and Seniors of all races in the greater Atlanta metropolitan area.

Students are encouraged to choose material that speaks to them in some way. They should have a point-of-entry into the character and be prepared to articulate the reason they chose their selection. It is highly recommended the student read the entire play from which their monologue is taken. Students may also choose material regardless of gender. The selection may be from one of the written speeches or from dialogue taken from one character within a scene.

Students perform before a panel of judges, comprised of theater professionals from the community, a one- to two-minute monologue taken from any of the plays in August Wilson’s Century Cycle.

Contestants will be judged on the basis of preparedness, understanding of the text, emotional connection to the material and commitment to the performance.

Approximately 15 finalists will appear before a ‘celebrity’ panel of theater professionals for the February 18th finals event that is open-to-the- public. All participants will receive an event t-shirt. Every finalist will receive a hardbound copy of an August Wilson play. A winner, runner-up and honorable mention will be chosen by the panel and receive scholarships.

Teachers, principals and school administrators across Atlanta are invited to attend and will be provided with an educational resource tool regarding participation in the next year’s competition.

August Wilson’s Century Cycle:
Gem Of The Ocean
Joe Turner’s Come And Gone
Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom
The Piano Lesson
Seven Guitars
Fences
Two Trains Running
Jitney
King Hedley II
Radio Golf