I suppose what I want most is a simple thing: the right to get up in the morning and not be apologised for. I don’t want to be fixed. I don’t want to be blamed. I want to be allowed to be messy and real and loud and sad and kind. I want someone to see me and not look away because I’m too small an inconvenience. I want my child, if I have one, to know the world is bigger than the judgements and smaller than the fears.
Whether you need help of the script to fit a strict time limit? Share public link
(She stops. Looks directly at the audience. Hard.)
Because the characters live in miserable conditions, it is easy to play the monologues with constant self-pity or anger. However, Jo and Helen are survivors. They use biting sarcasm, wit, and humor to keep from crying. Play the resistance to the sadness rather than the sadness itself. The tension between their tough exterior and their inner vulnerability is what captivates an audience. Define the Specific Relationship a taste of honey monologue
To help you choose the best piece for your upcoming project, could you tell me your , and the specific tone (e.g., sharp and comedic, deeply tragic, or quietly tender) you are aiming for? Share public link
: Jo is processing her pregnancy by a Black sailor who has abandoned her. She lives in a rundown flat and finds herself caught between a desire for independence and a terrifying fear of becoming just like her mother.
This is "Kitchen Sink Realism." Avoid over-acting the emotion. The power comes from Jo trying to stay "tough" while the world feels like it's closing in on her. Save My Exams For a deep dive into the character's motivations, the BBC Bitesize guide to Jo I suppose what I want most is a
The men who passed through our house… you learn to take men as you take buses. Some stop and go, some don’t come at all. The difference was, I didn’t want this bus to leave me standing. I wanted someone who’d get off at my stop, you know? People laugh about wanting big things. They say people like me want mountains and palaces. But I don’t. I want someone who makes tea and asks how your day was and means it. I want someone who’ll keep their word more than long enough to last a night. I want someone to stand on the other side of the kitchen while I’m making something bad and tell me it’ll be all right. Is that so much?
(Jo sits heavily on the edge of the bed, rubbing her swollen belly. She looks around the empty, peeling walls of the flat and scoffs, picking up a stray, tattered baby shawl.)
The most discussed monologue in the play occurs in Act 2, Scene 1, where the seventeen-year-old Jo delivers a powerful speech about the challenges of being a young, pregnant, and unsupported woman. By this point in the play, Jo has been abandoned by her mother and the father of her baby, leaving her isolated. Her monologue is a showcase of both her resilience and her profound vulnerability. I want to be allowed to be messy
This piece is written for the character of Jo, a fiercely defensive yet deeply vulnerable teenage girl living in a bleak, rented flat in Salford. In this imagined moment, she is heavily pregnant, alone, and reflecting on her mother’s abandonment and her own terrifying transition into motherhood. A Taste of Honey
If you are interested in auditioning, I can provide more or suggest complementary monologues that explore the play’s themes of race and homosexuality. A Taste of Honey | PDF - Scribd
Shelagh Delaney was only 18 when she wrote A Taste of Honey , but her sharp, unsentimental portrayal of working-class life in post-war Salford changed British theatre forever. For actors, the play—and specifically the monologues of its protagonist, Jo—offers a masterclass in vulnerability, cynicism, and raw teenage defiance.
But I don't want to flutter. I want to stand still. I want to build something that doesn't fall apart the moment the wind blows.