Monologue timer: how long is my monologue?

A word count gives you a fast estimate, which helps when you choose between pieces. It cannot know where you pause, how long a beat lasts, or how much a moment slows you down. Before an audition, perform the piece at full energy with the stopwatch and use that number.

If the estimate and your real time are far apart, check whether you rush when you are nervous. A piece that runs short in rehearsal often runs even shorter in the room.

For a whole scene or play, the script line counter gives the same estimate for every character, along with their lines and words.

1. Find the turn: the moment the character changes their mind or their tactic. Protect it.
2. Cut lines that repeat an idea the audience already has.
3. Shorten long setups before the turn, and lists of three or more examples.
4. Read the cut version out loud to check that each thought still connects to the next.
5. Time a full performance again. Leave a few seconds of margin under the limit.

Once the cut is final, learn it word for word. The first-letter memorizer turns your text into recall cues, and Offbook lets you rehearse with the cues hidden while it listens to you say the lines.