True Colors Next Narrative^® Monologue Competition (NNMC), the company’s signature education program, leverages the power of monologues to enhance both academic study and social emotional skills. The program is unique in that each of the monologues has been commissioned by True Colors specifically for the program, on themes that resonate with 21st century teens. The contemporary Black playwrights whose work makes up the compendium represent the vast diversity of the African diaspora – Afro-Latine, LGBTQIA+, multigenerational, women, indigenous, immigrants and more.

NNMC is open to all high school students in grades 9 – 12 under 18 years old. Through a range of program styles including after-school, master classes and in-school residencies, students work with teaching artists to find their voices through monologue selection and performance.

Students progress through three competitive rounds—preliminaries, semi-finals, and a regional final. The top two winners from each region win an all-expense-paid trip to New York City. There, on the legendary stage of the Apollo Theater, they compete for cash prizes in the National Finals against 24 other regional winners. In addition to the National Finals competition at the Apollo Theatre, the national finals weekend includes professional development workshops with theatre professionals and tickets to a Broadway show. The top three winners receive cash prizes.