Overview
Show
Character
Gender
Female
Playing Age
Adult
Style
Dramatic
Act/Scene
Act 5, Scene 2
Time & Place
Inside Cleopatra's fortified monument in Alexandria, Egypt, after being captured by Roman forces.
Length
Short
Time Period
Classical
Show Type
Play
Age Guidance
Thirteen Plus (PG-13)
Context
Cleopatra is speaking defiantly to Proculeius, an
to read the context for this monologue from Antony and Cleopatra and to unlock other amazing theatre resources!Text
Sir, I will eat no meat, I'll not drink, sir;
If idle talk will once be necessary,
I'll not sleep neither: this mortal house I'll ruin,
Do Caesar what he can. Know, sir, that I
Will not wait pinion'd at your master's court;
Nor once be chastised with the sober eye
Of dull Octavia. Shall they hoist me up
And show me to the shouting varletry
Of censuring Rome? Rather a ditch in Egypt
Be gentle grave unto me! rather on Nilus' mud
Lay me stark naked, and let the water-flies
Blow me into abhorring! rather make
My country's high pyramides my gibbet,
And hang me up in chains!
Performance Tips
- Commit fully to the horrific imagery of the
Emotional Beat Breakdown
1. Complete Rejection
- What shifts: The
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