Monologue

Clown Monologue from The Winter's Tale

From The Winter's Tale by William Shakespeare

male · comedic · 1:28 min

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Let me see: every ’leven wether tods; every tod yields pound and odd shilling; fifteen hundred shorn, what comes the wool to? (AUTOLYCUS: If the springe hold, the cock’s mine.) I cannot do’t without counters. Let me see; what am I to buy for our sheep-shearing feast? “Three pound of sugar, five pound of currants, rice”—what will this sister of mine do with rice? But my father hath made her mistress of the feast, and she lays it on. She hath made me four-and-twenty nosegays for the shearers, three-man song-men all, and very good ones; but they are most of them means and basses, but one puritan amongst them, and he sings psalms to hornpipes. I must have saffron to colour the warden pies; “mace; dates”, none, that’s out of my note; “nutmegs, seven; a race or two of ginger”, but that I may beg; “four pound of prunes, and as many of raisins o’ th’ sun.” (AUTOLYCUS: O that ever I was born!) I’ th’ name of me!

About this piece

The Clown is preparing for a sheep-shearing feast, humorously listing the items he needs to buy while reflecting on his sister's role in the festivities and the peculiarities of the musicians involved.

20s · joy · family · celebration · identity · community

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