LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny

by Alisha Gaddis

(Applause Acting Series). The first and only book of its kind, this cutting-edge and incredibly hysterical monologue book is specifically for actors auditioning for LGBTQ roles. LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny features works by LGBT writers and comics (and their allies) who have written and/or performed for Comedy Central, Backstage magazine, NBC, the Huffington Post, the Onion, Second City, E!, and many more. This collection is the go-to source for the comedic monologue needs of actors seeking LGBT material, as well as a paean to LGBT characters and artists.

Genres: LGBT, Plays

224 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2016

Reviews

[Noah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Poorly written and deeply unfunny - very disappointing because we need more queer monologue anthologies (especially with comedic pieces) that are actually well written.

[Colin Cox · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is something inauspicious about both the title and the introduction to LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny. Near the end of the introduction, editor Alisha Gaddis writes, “So take this book. Be YOU! Take a monologue that is actually funny and DO IT!” While certainly not her intention, language such as “actually funny” suggests that some monologues in this collection are, in fact, not funny, so just pick the funny ones…you’ll see what she means. But to my delight, the content of this collection transcends those initial concerns. LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny is a clever, multi-faceted, and affecting text that has a place, albeit marginally, in the canon of queer texts.

Many of the writers in LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny contribute more than one monologue, and the best among them is Leah Mann. Breaking Bad News is the second monologue in the collection, and it succinctly encapsulates Mann’s comedic and dramatic sensibilities. According to the stage directions, Sam is an “androgynous woman” who breaks “some devastating news to her beloved children” (6). It is not until the final few lines of the monologue that readers realize Sam’s children are pet dogs. Mann intends to normalize the androgynous Sam by allowing her the trudge through the mundane muck of cliched, heteronormative relationships. Mann like many of her contributors refrains from “othering” LGBTQ characters. That, of course, is potentially problematic. Numbers of LGBTQ individuals oppose, for example, same-sex marriage because they are committed to constructing new, non-heteronormative, non-patriarchal family structures. While this does not constitute “othering” in a xenophobic sense, it does create space for queer subjects to reflect, through resistance and difference, the deficiencies of heteronormativity in radical and productive ways. While funny, Breaking Bad News may detract from the radicality of queer identities.

Mann also contributes The Siren’s Lament, a smart, quasi-mythological monologue that imagines Charybdis as queer and perpetually longing for more women to take to the sea. At one point she declares, “May not a woman wish to see the world? To explore, to conquer? I would lure a thousand men to their doom on this wasted isle if you would send me one single woman to warm my cold-blooded heart for a night” (140). This fun, playful reimagining speaks to the best LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny has to offer.

While LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny has its limitations, the monologues that work (see also Jamison Scala, Alessandra Rizzotti, Molly Green, Tiffany E. Babb, and Corrine Glazer) do so proudly, fearlessly, and most importantly, comedically.

[Maddy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did laugh a few times over some of these characters and their antics but a lot of them were misses for me. Anthologies are especially hard to rate because they often have very different perspectives so I often have varying feelings from piece to piece. There are a few monologues that I liked but this wasn't my favorite queer comedy that I've ever read/experienced by a long shot.

2.5 Stars

[Katrina Rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

LGBTQ Comedic Monologues That Are Actually Funny is a collection of monologues for the LGBTQ actor or actress. These monologues were designed by LGBT writers, comics and their allies.
I read through the LGBTQ Monologues because I like to see what's out there for the LGBTQ friendly person. I commend the team that put these together. This is the very first book of it's kind.

However, I expected a lot more humor throughout this book. I found that a lot of the comedy didn't translate well. It felt very dry at times.

I'll give it the benefit of the doubt though, as I'm not an actress. There may be some one out there that would make these monologues funnier if they were to deliver them just right,

There isn't enough out there for the LGBTQ community, so once again I am thankful for this book and I believe it's a step in the right direction.

Thank you to edelweiss for the arc in exchange for an honest review

[Mills College Library]

812.04508 L687 2016