Tuesday, September 15, 2026

A Noise Within Opens Its Teen Monologue Festival, and the First Deadline Is October 5

Ten winners will perform on the Redmond Stage in Pasadena November 3 at 6 p.m. Getting there starts with picking a play written before 2010

A Noise Within has opened submissions for its annual Teen Monologue Festival, a competitive acting program that asks high school students to research the classic theater canon and perform a monologue drawn from it, according to information the Pasadena theater company posted on its website.

The festival is open to students in grades 9-12 in Los Angeles County and surrounding areas, a range that includes Pasadena and Altadena, the company said in its festival flyer. From all submissions, 10 winners will be chosen to perform live on the A Noise Within Redmond Stage on Tuesday, November 3 at 6 p.m. There is no fee to enter, according to the flyer.

Applications follow a three-step calendar. Actors submit their proposed monologue playwright and play title by Monday, October 5. Upon approval, they submit a self-tape audition by Thursday, October 8. The 10 winners are announced Tuesday, October 20.

The monologue criteria are specific. The monologue must come from a full-length play written before 2010, and monologues from musicals or standalone monologue books will not be accepted. It must run two to three minutes, and it must come from a play the company describes as widely recognized as a classic or part of the classic theater canon. Participants must read the entire play and be prepared to speak on the importance of the play and why they selected it.

The company has also posted a recommended list of playwrights it considers essential members of the classic theater canon.

Winners attend a Monologue Festival Masterclass at the theater with an A Noise Within resident artist on Sunday, November 1 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., then perform in front of a panel of theater professionals and a live audience. Attendance at the masterclass is mandatory, the company said.

Questions may be directed to education@anoisewithin.org.

Teen Monologue Festival, Tuesday, November 3 at 6 p.m. A Noise Within, 3352 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena. For more information, call (626) 356-3100 or visit https://www.anoisewithin.org/education/youth-teen-programming/teen-monologue-festival/. Tickets: There is no fee to compete; admission information for the showcase was not available from the theater.