Reference Materials

Honing your craft
Classical Scenes and Monologues
Contemporary Scenes and Monologues
Writing Original Monologues
Cold Reading Tips
TV and Film Scripts
Radio Plays
Shakespeare
Commedia dell' Arte
Greek/Roman Theatre

Monologue Links, Script Resources

  • Dramatic Publishing
    Publishing fine plays since 1885, Dramatic Publishing is committed to developing and serving the artists, educators and writers who comprise the world of theatre. We offer musicals, full-length and one-act plays and high-quality theatrical books suitable for high-school theater, children’s theater, professional theater and community theater. Our catalog includes plays for every cast size, skill level and audience and includes drama, comedy and tragedy, classic, modern and timeless.
  • Music Theatre International
    MTI - Music Theatre International: One of the world's major dramatic licensing agencies, specializing in Broadway, Off-Broadway and West End musicals. Since its founding in 1952, MTI has been responsible for supplying scripts and musical materials to theatres worldwide and for protecting the rights and legacy of the authors whom it represents. Whether it is the newest hit from the Broadway or London stage, or a timeless classic, MTI has been a driving force in cultivating new work and in extending the production life of the great American musicals.
  • Samuel French
    Samuel French seeks out the world's best plays and makes them available to the widest range of producing groups. Sources of Samuel French's plays range from Broadway and England's West End to publication of unsolicited scripts submitted by unpublished authors.
  • Dramatists Play Service
    Representing American theatre by publishing and licensing the works of new and established playwrights.
  • The Internet Theatre Bookshop
    Provides an international catalogue of plays, theatre related books, and plays-out-of-print. Access 50000 titles and purchase online.
  • Playscripts, Inc.
    A publisher of new plays, selling books and performance rights and offering free online script samples.

Trade Magazines

  • Backstage.com
    BackStage.com is the complete online Actors Resource. Read inside information on casting, union, stage, film news and review.
  • Back Stage West Magazine (Amazon.com)
    Back Stage West magazine is the bible of performing artists on both coasts. These performing-arts weeklies serve the performer in the theater, film and TV industries, providing the most up-to-date news, reviews and casting information. Editorial coverage focuses on industry news, service features and theater/dance reviews. Readers include actors, singers, dancers, directors, playwrights and craftspeople. Column topics include various aspects of the business advice (income tax, auditioning) and regional theater.
  • Hollywood Reporter
    The Hollywood Reporter provides in-depth news coverage on all aspects of the entertainment industry, including film, television, music, and awards.
  • Variety
    Breaking entertainment movie news, movie reviews, entertainment industry events, news and reviews from Cannes, Oscars, and Hollywood awards.
  • Texas Theatre Journal
    The mission of the Texas Theatre Journal is to publish articles, documents and book reviews relating to theatre and the Performing Arts, with an emphasis on those activities in the State of Texas.
  • Dramatics Magazine
    Magazine for theatre students and teachers, with articles on acting, directing, design, and other facets of theatre, published by the Educational Theatre Association.

Professional/Educational Organizations, Associations, and Unions

  • The Educational Theatre Association (Home of International Thespians and Dramatics Magazine)
    Promotes theatre arts programs in education. Its International Thespian Society is a national high school honorary society for theatre students.
  • T.E.T.A. (Texas Educational Theatre Association)
    TETA is a non-profit organization whose primary objective is to promote the development and continuation of high quality theatre programs in Texas schools.
  • AEA (Actors Equity Association)
    Actors' Equity Association is the labor union representing American actors and stage managers in the theatre.
  • AFTRA (American Federation of Television and Radio Artists)
    The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) is a national labor union representing over 70,000 performers, journalists and other artists working in the entertainment and news media.
  • SAG (Screen Actors Guild)
    Includes information for beginning actors, a member directory, and the SAG awards.
  • AACT (American Association of Community Theatre)
    The American Association of Community Theatre is the national voice of community theatre, representing the interests of its members and over 7,000 theatres across the U.S. and with the armed forces overseas. AACT offers a wide range of member benefits and services.
  • Artslynx (International Arts Resources)
    Artslynx is designed as a portal to the best information on the arts available on the web. Its curated link libraries and extensive original material (especially in the areas of theatre and dance) are specifically optimized for researchers, scholars, educators, students, and professionals working in the arts.
  • National Unified Auditions
    Times and locations for auditions to undergraduate B.F.A. programs in Theatre including: Acting, Drama, Design (Scenery, Lighting, Costume, Sound, Make Up, etc), Musical Theatre, Musical Theatre Dance, Performance, Stage Management, Technical Direction, and Theatre Technology.
  • SETC (South Eastern Theatre Conference)
    SETC has as its purpose to provide services and educational programs for those individuals and organizations engaged in theatre in the southeast. Member states include: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia.
  • SWTFA (South Western Theatre and Film Association)
    SWTFA’S mission is to provide networking, training and scholarship opportunities in theatre and film while promoting innovative and outstanding achievements. SWTFA fosters interaction and exchange among those engaged in all aspects of theatre and film through an annual conference, publications, advocacy and support for its constituency in Arkansas, Arizona, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
  • National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts
    The mission of the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts is to identify emerging artists and assist them at critical junctures in their educational and professional development; and to raise the appreciation for, and support of, the arts in American Society.
  • The Billy Rose Theatre Collection (New York Public Library)
    The Billy Rose Theatre Collection of The New York Public Library is one of the largest and most comprehensive archives devoted to the theatrical arts.
  • IALD (International Association of Lighting Designers)
    The IALD provides education and networking for architectural lighting designers.
  • NAMT (National Alliance for Musical Theater)
    The National Alliance for Musical Theatre, celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2005, is the only national service organization dedicated exclusively to musical theatre. Its 130 members include not-for-profit theatres, presenters, individual producers, and universities. Located throughout 33 states and 6 countries, member companies vary substantially in size, structure, and purpose, yet all share a commitment to preserve and enhance this uniquely American art form.
  • PAAW (Performing Arts & Artists Worldwide)
    A worldwide directory of official web sites of Organizations of the Performing Arts, Film and Music Industry and production and their Professionals thereof.
  • Performing Arts Online
    This site is dedicated to the perpetuation of quality performing arts where performing artists, performing arts management, performing arts presenters, and audiences may participate in the exchange and creation of cultural and artistic ideas.
  • Playbill Online
    News, features, performance listings for Broadway, Off-Broadway, London and Regional theatre. Buy discount theater tickets.
  • US Performing Arts Camps
    The mission of US Performing Arts Camps is to promote and develop the growth of performing artists in America. Our intensive conservatory-style summer camps are designed for middle and high school students between the ages of 11 and 18. This year we also have two programs for up and coming performance artists ages 19-22.