CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
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Select ONE monologue from the choices provided on the following pages.
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ALL monologues are open to every gender.
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SELF-TAPE and UPLOAD your audition following the directions below very carefully:
o Please select only ONE monologue from the choices provided.
o Make sure to clearly slate your NAME and HEIGHT before your audition.
o The framing for your SLATE should be FULL BODY. The framing for your
AUDITION should be from CHEST/SHOULDERS UP.
o Make sure there are NO DISTRACTING ELEMENTS (i.e. low lighting, background
objects, disruptive noise, avoid wearing white, stripes, or checks).
o Self-Tapes MUST be sent in via a PASSWORD PROTECTED VIMEO LINK. Make
sure to include your password in your submission or we will not be able to view
your audition.
o If you have another person assist you in making your self-tape, please have them
complete and sign the Videographer Release at the end of the application, and
include the signed release along with your signed application in your submission.
o To upload to Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/upload
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#1
Long day. Long... and busy. With some very interesting findings.
Particularly in the case of your victim...you can see, in his
injuries, a lot of swelling and bruising and in some areas,
bleeding... All of these consistent with a non-lethal beating.
And yet he’s dead. The victim was struck once, with significant
force, effectively transecting the brain stem, in the area of
medulla oblongata. But herein lies our conundrum--The bruising
and swelling you see took time. At least 60 minutes for the body
to respond to the injuries to this degree. The brain stem
injury. However, was instantly fatal. The blow that killed him
was delivered 60 minutes after the beating.
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#2
At the scene, on the day of the crime, the victim told police
what happened. Repeated it in his official statement at police
headquarters. Repeated it again, under oath, in the preliminary
hearing. Accusing the defendant of armed robbery. A charge
Elijah Palmer, his partner in crime, pled guilty to. The same
exact story, told over and over and over again. And then,
minutes before he was to take the stand and tell that story
here, he was accosted in the courthouse hallway by the attorney
for the accused, Mr. Campos. Ladies and gentleman please, don’t
let another defense lawyer subvert justice again. His client is
guilty. They don’t fool me. Don’t let them fool you.
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#3
All kinds of strange things brewing. Mercury’s in retrograde, in
case you hadn’t noticed. No telling what mayhem will pop up
after the sun goes down. I’m still piecing things together, but
here’s what I know so far... Because most destruction was
contained to the family room, it’s clear Simon Reeves’ abductor
didn’t enter the house violently. And there’s no evidence of a
chase. Probably tried to reason with him. But when that didn’t
work, the you-know-what really hit the fan. Judging from the
amount of blood on the couch, I’m betting this is where the
finger was cut. And tissue from the finger is a DNA match to
blood found in the house. Definitely belongs...correction, used
to belong to Simon Reeves. No prints, either. Besides those
matching our victim and Lieutenant Reeves. Which makes total
sense since it is their house. Our suspect has trauma training.
He knows how to detach a finger cleanly. Lucky for us, he left
more than the finger behind.
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#4
Barbara, because of your pregnancy you chose not to have
chemotherapy or radiation, which would have shrunk or controlled
your lymphoma. Because it’s grown over time, you’re having
increasing symptoms. It’s basically strangling your heart. And
as it grows it becomes more difficult to address surgically. But
we can operate. But you have to understand this is risky. There
are no guarantees of success, and this is extremely time
sensitive. We’ll need to do the surgery right away.
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#5
You left something at the hospital, Damian. Thought you might
want it back. The doctors pulled it out of my wife. There’s
another one still in her, but they’re afraid to take it out
‘cause it might kill her. I want to introduce you to someone.
This is Assistant District Attorney Ally Robinson. You have any
idea why she’s here? To make sure I don’t choke you out with my
Glock. You see, they’re worried about me around here. They think
I’m unstable. They think I got a screw loose and that was before
you tried to kill the mother of my children. No, my kids got
lucky. This is Sandra and Elizabeth Mills. You killed their
father last night. That’s right. Pulling the trigger is easy.
Facing the consequences, not so much. Oh no, you don’t get to
cry. Not here. Not in front of me.
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#6
Captain, geniuses lay things out in a very emotional way. Most
of our team members have extremely high IQ but low EQ: emotional
quotient. This is where I come in, I translate them: they know
their technology better than anyone in the world, and
intellectually they know this project is very dangerous, even if
what you’re hearing from their mouth is impenetrable jargon. So,
for the tech look to them. For the terror and worry...look to
me. I’m their...project manager.
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#7
Faithful insomniacs, Alex Smith here, it’s been a long night. If
you’re listening to me, it’s because you’ve got no choice. This
barrier thing is blocking all cell phones, internet, TV,
everything in our humble burg of Mystic Creek. Theories about
what’s causing it range from the North Koreans to a breach in
the space-time continuum, but remember theories are theories and
facts are facts. On a brighter note, Councilman Tom Ryan has
been delivering spare generators around town all night long. For
those of you lucky enough to have one, just remember to
conserve, cause we don’t know how long we’re gonna be stuck in
this predicament.
CBS Drama Diversity Casting Initiative
Monologues
#8
Hello. My name is Jessie, and I’m an alcoholic. I haven’t had a
drink in...just about a year now. And I wanna say, it’s been a
blessing having the support of this group. Before I got here, I
wasn’t much for what you’d call group think. But the 12 steps,
they got me back on the path. Helping others who suffer.
Recognizing a higher power. Accepting what I cannot change. The
lawyer, he got in touch with me recently. He told me there’d
been some kind of screw up in the ‘chain of custody’ with the
evidence related to my case. He told me if we appeal...it’s
possible we could get a new trial. I could be a free person.
But—I have to make amends for what I’ve done. That’s the step I
gotta focus on. Making amends. To those I’ve wronged.