monodrama

[ mon-uh-drah-muh, -dram-uh ]

noun

1. a dramatic piece for only one performer.

monodrama

/ ˈmɒnəʊˌdrɑːmə /

noun

1. a play or other dramatic piece for a single performer

Derived Forms

• ˌmonodraˈmatic, adjective

Other Words From

• mon·o·dra·mat·ic [mon-, uh, -dr, uh, -, mat, -ik], adjective
• mono·drama·tist noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of monodrama¹

First recorded in 1785–95; mono- + drama

Example Sentences

The composer who was reluctant to write for theater would go on to create the richly nuanced monodrama “Émilie,” premiered by the soprano Karita Mattila in 2010; the Noh-inspired “Only the Sound Remains,” staged in 2016; and “Innocence,” first unveiled at the Aix-en-Provence Festival in 2021, a work powerfully wise in its ideas and execution, a smoothly cohesive collage of styles that now seems like something of a career capstone, if not her masterpiece.

From New York Times

Or so “Being Mr. Wickham,” a tart monodrama written by Adrian Lukis and Catherine Curzon, would have us believe.

From New York Times

“Eight Songs for a Mad King” is a 30-minute music-theater monodrama, written by Davies in 1969 in collaboration with the actor Roy Hart.

From New York Times

The message had seeped so deeply into her consciousness that when she was offered “Prima Facie” — a monodrama performed to huzzahs in London last year, and now to hearty approval on Broadway — she was surprised that she hadn’t been required to read for the part.

From Washington Post

“Mary Motorhead” is a monodrama featuring the vivid, charismatic Naomi Louisa O’Connell in the raconteur title role of a woman in prison for killing her husband.

From New York Times