A monodrama is a theatrical or

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

tic piece played by a single

actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

or singer, usually portraying one character.

In opera

In opera, a monodrama was originally a

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exces ...

with one role such as

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Genevan philosopher, writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment throughout Europe, as well as aspects of the French Revolu ...

's ''

Pygmalion Pygmalion or Pigmalion may refer to: Mythology * Pygmalion (mythology), a sculptor who fell in love with his statue Stage * ''Pigmalion'' (opera), a 1745 opera by Jean-Philippe Rameau * ''Pygmalion'' (Rousseau), a 1762 melodrama by Jean-Jacques ...

'', which was written in 1762 and first staged in Lyon in 1770, and

Georg Benda Georg Anton Benda ( cz, Jiří Antonín Benda, italic=no, link=no; 30 June 17226 November 1795) was a composer, violinist and Kapellmeister of the classical period from the Kingdom of Bohemia. Biography Born into a family of notable musician ...

's work of the same name (1779). The term monodrama (sometimes mono-opera) is also applied to modern works with a single soloist, such as

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

's ''

Die glückliche Hand ' (''The Hand of Fate''), Op. 18, is a ''Drama mit Musik'' ("drama with music") by Arnold Schoenberg in four scenes. It was composed between 1910 and 1913. Like ''Erwartung'', composed a year earlier, it was heavily influenced by Otto Weininger's ...

'' (1924), which besides the

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

has two additional silent roles as well as a

choral A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

prologue and epilogue. ''

Erwartung ' (''Expectation''), Opus number, Op. 17, is a one-act monodrama in four scenes by Arnold Schoenberg to a libretto by . Composed in 1909, it was not premiered until 6 June 1924 in Prague conducted by Alexander von Zemlinsky, Alexander Zemlinsky wi ...

'' (1909) and ''

La voix humaine ' (English: ''The Human Voice'') is a forty-minute, one-act opera for soprano and orchestra composed by Francis Poulenc in 1958. The work is based on the play The Human Voice, of the same name by Jean Cocteau, who, along with French soprano Denis ...

'' (1959) closely follow the traditional definition, while in ''

Eight Songs for a Mad King ''Eight Songs for a Mad King'' is a monodrama by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies with a libretto by Randolph Stow, based on words of George III. The work was written for the South-African actor Roy Hart and the composer's ensemble, the Pierrot Player ...

'' (1969) by

Peter Maxwell Davies Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (8 September 1934 – 14 March 2016) was an English composer and conductor, who in 2004 was made Master of the Queen's Music. As a student at both the University of Manchester and the Royal Manchester College of Music ...

, the instrumentalists are brought to the stage to participate in the action. Twenty-first century examples can be found in '' Émilie'' (2008) by

Kaija Saariaho Kaija Anneli Saariaho (; ; born 14 October 1952) is a Finnish composer based in Paris, France. During the course of her career, Saariaho has received commissions from the Lincoln Center for the Kronos Quartet and from IRCAM for the Ensemble Inter ...

and ''Four Sad Seasons Over Madrid'' (2008) or ''God's Sketches'' (2011) both of them by

Jorge Grundman Jorge Grundman Isla (born 1961) is a Spanish classical composer, musicologist, musician and professor who has helped to recover the music of Robert Kahn and Adalbert Gyrowetz among others through the non-profit music foundation created by him. Mus ...

In spoken drama

In England the first example of monodrama was on a mythological theme, in this case Frank Sayers' ''Pandora'' (1790), in the form of a recitation with off-stage voices.

Robert Southey Robert Southey ( or ; 12 August 1774 – 21 March 1843) was an English poet of the Romantic school, and Poet Laureate from 1813 until his death. Like the other Lake Poets, William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Southey began as a ra ...

took up the new form, producing eleven pieces so titled between 1793-1804; so did Matthew Lewis in his publicly performed and highly melodramatic ''The Captive''. Few others actually appeared on stage and monodrama soon lost its connection with music. The term "

dramatic monologue Dramatic monologue is a type of poetry written in the form of a speech of an individual character. M.H. Abrams notes the following three features of the ''dramatic monologue'' as it applies to poetry: Types of dramatic monologue One of the mo ...

" came to be applied to such works, although the term "monodrama" remained in critical currency. Half a century later Tennyson himself referred to his '' Maud'' (1855) as a monodrama, and William Lancaster (

John Warren, 3rd Baron de Tabley John Byrne Leicester Warren, 3rd Baron de Tabley (26 April 1835 – 22 November 1895) was an English poet, numismatist, botanist and an authority on bookplates. Biography He was eldest son of George Fleming Leicester (afterwards Warren), Lord ...

) published a verse collection titled ''Eclogues and Monodramas'' in 1864. Nevertheless,

Nurul Momen Nurul Momen (25 November 1908 – 16 February 1990) was a Bangladeshi playwright, educator, director, broadcast personality, academician, satirist, essayist, translator and poet.Bangla Natyashahitter Itihash, the most authoritative reference boo ...

('' Nemesis'', 1944),

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic expe ...

(''

Krapp's Last Tape ''Krapp's Last Tape'' is a 1958 one-act play, in English, by Samuel Beckett. With a cast of one man, it was written for Northern Irish actor Patrick Magee (actor), Patrick Magee and first titled "Magee monologue". It was inspired by Beckett's e ...

'', 1958) and

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

(''

On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco ''On the Harmful Effects of Tobacco'' (russian: О вреде табака, translit=O vredye tabaka) is a one-act play by Anton Chekhov. It has one character, Ivan Ivanovich Nyukhin. First published in 1886, the play was revised by Chekhov and ...

'', 1886, 1902), among others, have written monodramas in this sense.

Patrick Süskind Patrick Süskind (; born 26 March 1949) is a German writer and screenwriter, known best for his novel '' Perfume: The Story of a Murderer'', first published in 1985. Early life Süskind was born in Ambach, Bavaria. His father was writer and jo ...

has one person speak to the audience in '' Der Kontrabaß'' (1981). A more recent example is ''

A Night in November ''A Night in November'' is a 1994 monodrama written by Marie Jones about one man's struggle with national identity during The Troubles in Northern Ireland. Plot summary ''A Night in November'' follows Kenneth Norman McCallister, a Protestant Dep ...

'' (1994) by Irish playwright

Marie Jones Sarah Marie Jones (born 1951) is a Belfast-based actress and playwright. Born into a working-class Protestant family, Jones was an actress for several years before turning her hand to writing. Her plays have been staged on Broadway theatre, Br ...

. As developed by

Russian symbolist Russian symbolism was an intellectual and artistic movement predominant at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. It arose separately from European symbolism, emphasizing mysticism and ostranenie. Literature Influences Primary ...

Nikolai Evreinov Nikolai Nikolayevich Evreinov (russian: Николай Николаевич Евреинов; February 13, 1879 – September 7, 1953) was a Russian director, dramatist and theatre practitioner associated with Russian Symbolism. Life The son of ...

(1879–1953) and encapsulated in his book ''The Theatre in Life'' (1927), it is a dramatic representation of what passes in an individual mind. Everything one witnesses on stage is portrayed from the mental state of the given protagonist. The largest solo theatre festival in the world, United Solo takes place annually in New York City at Theatre Row. In 2013 it featured over 120 productions. In

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the J ...

, Germany, an international theatre festival for monodramas takes place regularly, the Thespis International Monodrama Festival.

References

{{Authority control Opera genres Opera terminology

In opera

In spoken drama

See also

References