<p>I'll be auditioning soon for various BFA programs, many of which demand a 1 minute 30 second audition. I've timed my piece out before, and almost every time it goes about 10 to 15 seconds over time, making it around 1 minute and 45 seconds long. Will judges stop me in the middle of my performance, simply because I went over time by a few seconds? Or is this timing more of a guideline?</p>
<p>Some will stop you, others won’t… but they’re going to be seeing tons of people and they’re not going to particularly fond of the ones who go on too long. I would find a place to cut the piece. You might be surprised – 1 1/2 minutes is plenty of time to really show what you can do, and that cut might make your audition stronger.</p>
<p>If it asks for a 1 minute 30sec monologue, that is the MAXIMUM length of monologue.</p>
<p>As Gwen said, they might stop you. Or maybe they won’t stop you, but mark you down for failure to follow instructions.</p>
<p>Remember that the auditors will have pretty much made up their minds about you within the first 10 seconds of your monologue.</p>
<p>If your monologue is running long, find a way to trim it. Can you take out the beginning or end? Are there sentences in the middle you can skip? Or else maybe, sigh, you will need to find another monologue. (Don’t try to fix it by speaking quicker! That will only hurt your monologue!)</p>
<p>The auditors will be seeing loads of people, and almost certainly be behind schedule, and they will not be happy with someone who takes more time than they are supposed to.</p>
<p>Sorry to be so harsh, but I’m afraid this is the reality.</p>
<p>KEVP</p>
<p>At the Fordham audition (which was very friendly) they gave students a sheet of audition facts including a warning that monologues over 1 minute 30 seconds would be cut off and that excessive length would “count against” the student.</p>
<p>Here’s another thing to think about (and that I tell my Forensics kids all the time): If you know in the back of your mind that your piece is too long, and that you might be penalized for it, are you really going to be relaxed enough to perform it at your best? If you’re waiting to see if they’re going to cut you off, it’s bound to hurt your acting. Shorten it, and let your confidence zoom.</p>
<p>As glassharmonica stated the Fordham sheet clearly stated that it would count against you if you went over. I suggested editing your piece just slightly to stay under the audition timeframe.</p>
<p>My son found at Unifieds that some schools said “don’t worry if it goes a few seconds over” I do think they meant seconds vs. minutes, though. It seemed like if the audition included a short interview afterward, it didn’t matter if you went over. For those schools that are truly a cattle call, 1-2 minutes you are out and the next kid is raced in…those seconds matter. Also, schools that have already sent out a lot of acceptances will dismiss you anyway before you are even finished if you are not the casting type they have left to fill.</p>