I am auditioning for a play "A Night With Edgar Allen Poe" and I have a question about one of the poems. In The Tell Tale Heart monologue it starts "Why would you think me mad? Nervous, yes, very very dreadfully nervous." My question is, is this from the beginning of the poem, or the end? By this I mean, has he already gone mad when he says this part? Is he telling his story to someone else? I need to know so I can either do the monologue as Mad or Calm.
TonyLomak
08-16-04, 07:34 PM
My take on this is he is telling his story to the reader. He start out telling his story in a calm manner as to convince the reader of his sanity. But as the story progresses he starts to crack and you can hear the madness emerge. Every time I have read it aloud I start out calm.
Joxer
08-16-04, 08:50 PM
well, when I got to the audition I asked the director and he told me that the way the play was written is that he has already killed the guy and is now telling the story afterward.
TonyLomak
08-16-04, 09:30 PM
Right, he has already killed the man and confessed the deed to the police. Now he is telling his story, trying to convince you he's not crazy.
He's very calm. He almost convinced the police investigators that nothing was wrong. But his internal pressure is so great that he sometimes explodes, and did it in front of the police.
He should be played calm and convincing, then tell a tale of complete irrationality. When he can't convince the audience that he's normal, then he ends screaming at them.
wmansir
08-19-04, 04:05 PM
There is an excellent animated short (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0046408/) narrated by James Mason which is included on the Hellboy DVD. It was nominated for a Best Short Oscar in 1954.
Buy: