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THE COMEDY OF ERRORS: MONOLOGUE NOTES

ACT II, SCENE II: ADRIANA MONOLOGUE

In this speech, Adriana beckons the man she thinks is her husband (Antipholus of Ephesus), who is in fact her husband’s twin (Antipholus of Syracuse). When he does not recognize her, she launches into a formidable tirade, which aptly paints a portrait of a passionate married woman with strong opinions on the institution of marriage—and a fiery personality to match.

Adriana begins the monologue with sarcasm. When she says, “Look strange and frown,” she is not describing what she wishes Antipholus to do. Rather, she is stating her distaste for Antipholus’ facial expression, prefacing her remarks with “Ay, ay.” She might even imitate his face by facially mirroring Antipholus’s blank, confused expression. If playing the speech as part of the scene, you can mimic the face Antipholus is making; if playing the monologue solo, you can simply invent a ridiculous face and express it straight out to the audience. Either way, it will likely get a laugh.

In the second sentence, Adriana’s suspicion is immediately evident: “Some other mistress hath thy sweet aspects.” The Folger Shakespeare Library notes for The Comedy of Errors indicate that the second syllable of “aspects” is emphasized. This will give you the opportunity to really spit out the word, with the sharp “-ects” sound cutting through the air like a knife. Utter it with heartache and fury.

The third sentence continues with derision: “I am not Adriana, nor thy wife.”

The words “Adriana” and “thy wife” can be emphasized. Color these words to express Adriana’s true feelings. Try saying “thy wife” with anger, and then try the phrase again with pain in your voice. Perhaps both emotions will make their way into the phrase. Study the whole speech and some of Adriana’s other earlier speeches in this scene and in Act II, Scene I. Invariably, when you are familiar with a character’s arc throughout the whole play, you are better able to deliver a nuanced speech containing that character’s many facets. Sadness and anger are evident in Adriana’s words. Can you identify any other emotions, perhaps in the subtext? Is there tenderness and love for Antipholus below the sorrow and hurt of perceived infidelity and abandonment?

A shift in tone and content follows the first three lines. Adriana now describes what she and Antipholus had together. She appeals to Antipholus’s senses: hearing, sight, touch, and taste, asserting that it was through his love for her that all his senses were enriched. There is an opportunity here for physical gestures. Something as simple as a soft palm-on-palm motion while speaking the word “hand” can convey the more gentle, wistful tone of this passage. Experiment in front of a mirror, and pick one gesture for the passage that you believe will aptly accompany this sensual set of descriptions.

Until the line that begins with “Unless I spake,” the speech is exclusively written in iambic pentameter. In this line, however, there is an extra beat: “Unless I spake or looked or touched, or carved” is one line of iambic pentameter. Thus, the moment before the words “To thee” emerges as a natural “beat” or breathing point. This beat can give weight to the two words and allow Adriana to pour an extra measure of tenderness into them. The iambic pentameter rhythm is like a heartbeat. When the rhythm is off by an extra beat, you can play it as if Adriana’s heart has skipped a beat, in this case at the mention of her love, Antipholus.

Next Adriana asks Antipholus a question, which shifts the tone from wistful and gentle to perplexed. Throughout this speech, it is important to note that Adriana is responding to an Antipholus who does not even recognize her. In order for the speech to have its full power, Adriana must react to Antipholus’s apparent amnesia at ever having known the woman who he married. Remember to exploit these baffling circumstances to maximize the dramatic impact of this monologue.

Shakespeare uses repetition throughout this passage, which you can use to drive Adriana’s point home and give the speech dynamics. The first two words in the monologue are the same: “Ay” and “Ay.” Make the second “Ay” louder and more powerful than the first. “That never” is repeated four times in a row. Use that repetition like a hammer, emphasizing Adriana’s plight. She repeats “how comes it” twice. When Adriana says something for the second time, you should echo the tone of the first instance but with the intensity raised. She repeats the word “thyself” four times and says “thy dear self” once. In this case, perhaps each instance of the word “thyself” has a slightly different tone, depending on the context in which it is spoken.

The word “self” will sound different when Adriana refers to “thy dear self’s better part” than it does when she implores Antipholus not to “tear away thyself from me.” Not all repetitions are the same. Study the repeated words and phrases and decide how you will use them to poetic and dramatic ends.

Adriana’s exclamation of “Ah, do not tear away thyself from me!” implies that she has either taken Antipholus by the arm or embraced him. If you are playing the scene with another actor, you can physically enact this, but if you are performing the monologue solo, perhaps you could interpret the phrase “tear away” to mean that Antipholus is walking away. If this is the case, you could take a step or two toward him.

This brings up an important point. When speaking to another character in a solo monologue, you must decide where that person is on stage. The character could be the audience as a whole, which can be achieved by looking straight out over the viewers. Another approach is to speak to an imagined person on the stage, presumably to your right or left (or moving across the stage). In the case of Antipholus’s “tearing” himself away from Adriana, whether Antipholus is on the stage or placed in the audience, the line indicates movement, so your eyes should follow Antipholus as he moves farther away. You might step closer to him for the next line.

This next line contains the phrase “my love.” Here Adriana is expressing how she feels inseparable from Antipholus. This echoes a speech by Antipholus of Syracuse in Act I, Scene II: “I to the world am like a drop of water/That in the ocean seeks another drop.”

In his earlier “drop of water” speech, Antipholus of Syracuse refers to his search for his long-lost brother. If playing this scene as a duo, Antipholus could react with recognition to this metaphor as Adriana speaks it, since he himself said similar words regarding his connection with his brother. If Adriana is playing the monologue solo, let the beauty and meaning of the words guide you. Luxuriate in their sound. Don’t rush the words. Enjoy them!

The sentence that begins “For know, my love,” is a long one—five lines—so you must find beats and breathing points. Find at least two places in the sentence to breathe and gather your vocal strength and tone. Certainly, the words “my love,” bracketed in commas, can be one breathing point. Again, use the repeated words (“drop,” “take,” “me”) and use them to give rhythmic and sonic shape to the speech. Perhaps simply emphasizing the repeated words will enhance their poetry.

Next, Adriana turns the tides, reminding Antipholus how he would feel if he suffered Adriana’s treatment. The language becomes sharper and harsher. The softness of the previous lines can now contrast with the coarseness of words such as “touch,” “quick,” “licentious,” “ruffian lust,” and “contaminate.” Emphasize the “s” and “t” sounds as you say them. Give physical illustration to words such as “spit,” “spurn,” “hurl,” “tear,” and “cut”. Lean your head forward when you say them. Use your arms to depict cutting, hurling, and tearing. This passage gives you an opportunity to show what Adriana feels in her body when she says these strong words.

In the final section of the soliloquy, Adriana again makes herself the subject of her words. This time, however, she does so in relation to Antipholus’s perceived misdeeds. She likens Antipholus’s infidelity to an infectious disease that stains her inside and out. Again, you can emphasize the sounds of key words such as “blood,” “crime,” “digest,” “poison,” “strumpeted,” and “contagion.”

Adriana’s text is full of beautifully descriptive language. If you color key words and phrases to give them their full expression, and study the speech for its poetry, meaning, and feeling, then you will indeed give life to Shakespeare’s wonderful depiction of a woman scorned.

SUGGESTED VIEWING

THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, 1978

Director: Phillip Casson

Starring: Judi Dench, Roger Rees

THE COMEDY OF ERRORS, 1983

Director: James Cellan Jones

Starring: Roger Daltrey, Suzanne Bertish