If We Shadows Have Offended (Puck's Epilogue)
by William Shakespeare
Monologue · public domain · free to perform · attribution required
If We Shadows Have Offended (Puck's Epilogue)
Puck, A Midsummer Night's Dream, Act 5 Scene 1, by William Shakespeare. Public domain. Intro and performance note by FreeSchoolPlays.com.
THE SPEECH IN PLAIN WORDS
The play is over, and Puck -- a playful, tricky fairy -- steps forward to speak directly to the audience. If anything in the show upset you, he says, just imagine you fell asleep and dreamed the whole thing. He promises the actors will do better next time, asks for a round of applause ("give me your hands"), and offers to be friends. It is a charming, cheeky goodbye that lets the audience off the hook and thanks them at once.
THE MONOLOGUE
If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear.
And this weak and idle theme,
No more yielding but a dream,
Gentles, do not reprehend.
If you pardon, we will mend.
And, as I am an honest Puck,
If we have unearned luck
Now to 'scape the serpent's tongue,
We will make amends ere long;
Else the Puck a liar call.
So, good night unto you all.
Give me your hands, if we be friends,
And Robin shall restore amends.
PERFORMANCE NOTE
Talk straight to the audience like a friend sharing a secret -- Puck is charming, quick, and not really sorry at all, so keep a twinkle under the apology. The short rhyming lines want a light, dancing rhythm; do not plod through them. Play "Give me your hands" as a genuine, warm request for applause, and let the very last line be a small, sincere bow after all the mischief.
This is the full, unaltered public-domain text (US); the introduction and performance note are by Monologue.Network via FreeSchoolPlays.com. Free to perform -- a single credit line is the only requirement.
Audition prep notes
Full piece: 1 beat, ~94 words -- very short (Under 2 minutes), about 1 min at a natural pace.
Start with the objective
Before you run it, name your character's objective in one sentence: what do they want in this moment, and what is in the way of getting it easily? Pace, volume, and movement all follow from that one sentence, not the other way around.
Map the beats
The current text renders as a single continuous block, with no internal paragraph breaks to key off of. Build your own beat map instead: mark every point where the character's tactic or target shifts -- a new argument, a new realization, a change in who or what they are speaking to -- and treat each as its own beat.
Pacing for this length -- very short
Economy is everything at this length: cut any preparatory movement before your first line, and land the final beat cleanly rather than adding a button. Under 2 minutes, this often plays as one unbroken thought.
Delivery approach -- Verse / Poetic
Honor the line, not just the sentence: breathe at the end of a verse line even when the punctuation runs on, and let the meter carry the emotional pulse instead of fighting it with naturalistic pauses.
Framing for All ages
This piece is written to read across age groups. Start from the plainest version of the objective -- what the character wants, and why now -- before layering in the nuance your own age and experience bring to it.
Forensics eligibility -- Poetry Interpretation
This piece reads as Poetry Interpretation. That classification is illustrative only -- not official, not an NSDA, NCFL, or UIL certification. Always verify current eligibility with your event's own published rules before entering it in competition.
Generic coaching guidance for actors preparing this piece -- not a substitute for your director's or coach's notes.
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