Events.

Interpretation

Interpretation events are events that range from 5-10 minutes with 30 second grace periods. Interpretative events are where students take literature written by other authors and interpret it using their voices and body language to tell a story. Some interpretative events are humorous, while others are dramatic in nature. Interpretative events can come from a single source or multiple sources, depending on the event. Interpretative events also can use a book or not use a book depending on the event. 

Speech

Speech events are events that range from 5-10 minutes with 30 second grace periods. Speech events are either prepared before the tournament or are allotted limited prep. Some speech events encourage the use of props, some are written by some students, while some are performances of another person's speech. 

Debate

Debate events are events that allow students to have a variety of conversations about policy, morality, and ideas with other students. Debate can be in numerous formats, but the three most well-known debates are Lincoln-Douglas (one-on-one), Policy Debate (Partner Debate), and Public Forum Debate (Partner Debate). Debaters follow a series of time limits and rules while debating in round. 

Short Event Descriptions

Debate

LINCOLN-DOUGLAS DEBATE (VARSITY AND NOVICE DIVISIONS)

• Lincoln-Douglas is a VALUE-based debate- questions of morality are addressed
• Debates in this division will follow the standard 6-3-7-3-4-6-3 format.
• Each debater has four minutes of prep time to use as they wish.
• A novice debater is a competitor in their first year of competition in ANY event. If a student ONLY competed in middle school, they may be considered novice during their first high school season.
• Laptop computers and tablet devices may be used by delegates, but may not be used to receive information for competitive advantage from non-competitors (coaches, assistant coaches, teammates, other students, etc.) inside or outside of the room in which the competition occurs.

POLICY DEBATE

• Policy Debate is a debate based around enacting policies and issues surrounding it
• The debate will follow the standard 8-3-8-3-8-3-8-3-5-5-5-5 format with open or closed cross-examination dependent on judge preference.
• Each team will have five minutes of prep time to use as they wish.​
• Laptop computers and tablet devices may be used by delegates, but may not be used to receive information for competitive advantage from non-competitors (coaches, assistant coaches, teammates, other students, etc.) inside or outside of the room in which the competition occurs.

PUBLIC FORUM DEBATE (VARSITY AND NOVICE DIVISIONS)

• Public Forum 
• The debate will follow the 4-4-3-4-4-3-3-3-3-2-2 format.
• Each team will have 3 minutes of prep time to use as they wish. We will respect the NSDA pilot of 1 additional minute of prep.
• ​A novice debater is a competitor in their first year of competition in ANY event. If a student competed in middle school, but did not compete in debate events on that level, they may be considered novice during their first high school season. For a team to enter the novice division, both speakers must be in their novice year.
• Laptop computers and tablet devices may be used by delegates, but may not be used to receive information for competitive advantage from non-competitors (coaches, assistant coaches, teammates, other students, etc.) inside or outside of the room in which the competition occurs.

Speech

DECLAMATION

• The selection has a maximum time of ten minutes. It must be memorized. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than 30 seconds should not be given first place in the panel.
• A selection in Declamation must have been originally delivered as a speech by its author, a person other than the present speaker.
• The event is only open to 9th and 10th-grade students.
• The speaker should convey the original author’s message in a sincere, honest, and realistic manner. Attempts at dramatization rather than communication should be avoided.
• A copy of the Declamation must be present at the tournament for verification purposes.

EXPOSITORY SPEAKING

• The speech must be an original composition of the contestant designed to inform, not primarily to persuade or entertain. A copy of the speech must be present at the tournament for verification purposes. The speech should describe, clarify, illustrate, or define an object, idea, concept, or process.
• A student may not use any portion of his/her Original Oratory entered at any tournament.
• The maximum time of presentation is five minutes with a thirty second grace period; there is no minimum time. Students that exceed the time limit should not receive first place in the panel; further consequences of exceeding the time limit are left to the discretion of the judge. No visual aids or props of any kind may be used.

INFORMATIVE SPEAKING

• Speeches in informative generally have some combination of problems, causes, and implications (or what your topic means to society as a whole.
• A visual aid is allowed and preferred. It may not be digital or involve electricity.
• The speech must be an original composition of the contestant designed to inform, not to entertain primarily. A copy of the speech must be present at the tournament for verification purposes.
• The speech should describe, clarify, illustrate, or define an object, idea, concept or process. It should not be persuasive.
• A fabricated topic/subject may not be used.
• A student may not use any portion of his/her Original Oratory or Expository Speaking speeches in this event.
• The maximum time of this event is ten (10) minutes. There is no minimum time limit. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than thirty seconds should not be given first place in the round.
• No animal or other people may be used as aids or aides. Items of dress put on and removed during the course of the presentation are considered visual aids and may not be part of the contestant’s presentation
• The speech should be memorized.

ORIGINAL ORATORY

• The oration shall require no more than ten minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than 30 seconds should not be given first in the panel. There is no official minimum time limit.
• The oration may be on any appropriate subject and must be the original work of the student with no more than 150 words of the oration used as a direct quotation from another speech or writing.
• An original copy of the Oratory must be present at the tournament for verification purposes. The copy should include a current bibliography of all sources used. The copy may be digital as long as it is easily accessible.
• The performance must be memorized.
• Oratories may be persuasive in nature, advocate for something, or eulogize a person
  

EXTEMPORANEOUS SPEAKING (VARSITY AND NOVICE DIVISIONS)

• The tournament director will prepare a list of topics on current foreign and domestic issues. The student will draw three questions and return two before he/she begins his/her preparation period.
• The student will have thirty minutes of time to prepare his/her speech. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than 30 seconds should not be given first place in a panel.
• The student may use one notecard with a maximum of fifty words on it.
• The student is responsible for providing his/her own extemp file, which may include published books, magazines, newspapers, and journals or articles from those sources, provided they are intact originals or copies of the originals and that there is no written material on the original or the copy. The student may prepare a topical index without annotation for his/her use.
• Extemporaneous Speaking files will be inspected by tournament staff at some point before or during competition.
• Laptop computers and tablet devices may be used by delegates, but may not be used to receive information for competitive advantage from non-competitors (coaches, assistant coaches, teammates, other students, etc.) inside or outside of the room in which the competition occurs.

Interpretation

DUET ACTING

• Selections shall be cuttings from a single source such as a single novel, short story, play, poem, or screenplay. No contestant may use the same literary that he or she used in previous competitive seasons.
• The material may be humorous, dramatic, or a combination of the two.
• Each performer may play one or more characters so long as the performance responsibility in the cutting remains as balanced as possible.
• The selection shall require no more than ten minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than 30 seconds should not be given first place in the panel. There is no official time limit.
• The interpretation must be delivered from memory; no notes, prompting or scripts shall be permitted. No costumes or props shall be permitted. During the performance, on-stage focus (meaning contestants MAY look directly at each other) may and/or should be employed by both contestants. Contestants are encouraged to touch and make eye contact during any part of the performance.
• Two chairs will be allowed for use as props or to facilitate blocking and to create levels, atmosphere, and environment.

DUO INTERPRETATION

• The selection shall require no more than ten (10) minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than thirty seconds should not be given first place in the round.
• The selection shall be a cutting from a single published work of literature. Recorded material that is not published is not acceptable. Lines which are attributed to a character in the published material may not be attributed to another character in the performance. The original of the piece must be present at the tournament for verification purposes.
• Participants will establish focus for the other character, but except for during the introduction, eye contact is not allowed.
• The selection must be memorized.
• The two performers may play one or more characters as long as the performance of the two competitors remains as balanced as possible.
• Participants should react to each other’s verbal and nonverbal expressions, but they may not touch each other. Touching during introduction is allowed, however.

HUMOROUS INTERPRETATION

• The selection shall require no more than ten minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than thirty seconds should not be given first place in the panel.
• The selection shall be a cutting from a published work such as a novel, short story, play, or poetry. Recorded material that is not printed and published is prohibited. Monologues are acceptable. The original source of the piece must be present at the tournament for verification purposes.
• The selection must be memorized. Students may move in any direction, but should remember that this is a contest in interpretation, not in solo acting.​

PROGRAM OF ORAL INTERPRETATION

• Competitors may mix selections from prose, poetry, and drama together to create one theme. The competitor must use at least 2 of the 3 literature types. The delivery of the entire program must be delivered from a manuscript.
• The selection shall require no more than ten minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than 30 seconds should not be given first place in the panel. There is no official time limit.
• Movement during the performance is allowed. The manuscript may be used as a prop during the performance.
• The focus of the event is to develop a theme or argument through the use of narrative, story, and/or characterization.

PROSE INTERPRETATION (VARSITY AND NOVICE DIVISIONS)

• The selection shall require no more than ten minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than 30 seconds should not be given first place in the panel. There is no official time limit.
• Prose includes fiction (short stories, novels) and non-fiction (articles, essays, journals, and biographies).
• A manuscript is required. The use of the manuscript as a prop is allowed.
• Eye contact with the audience during the performance should at least be at a 50/50 ratio.
• The selection must come from a single published source. The original source of the piece must be present and a digital copy of the cutting should be available at the tournament for verification purposes.
• The performer should remain in one place with motion limited to the waist up.

POETRY INTERPRETATION (VARSITY AND NOVICE DIVISIONS)

• The selection shall require no more than ten (10) minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than thirty seconds should not be given first place in the round.
• A performer may use a single poem, or a program of multiple poems centered around a theme. Appropriate transitional material is required and is a part of the ten-minute time limit.
• A manuscript is required. Use of the manuscript as a prop is allowed.
• The poetry must come from a published source or sources which must be accessible at the tournament for verification purposes.
• Eye contact with the audience during the performance should at least be at a 50/50 ratio.
• The performer should remain in one place with motion limited to the waist up.

DRAMATIC INTERPRETATION

• The selection shall require no more than ten minutes. There is a 30-second grace period. Students who exceed the time limit by more than 30 seconds should not be given first place in the panel. There is no official minimum time limit.
• The selection should be a cutting from a published work such as a novel, short story, play, or poetry. Recorded material that is not printed and published is prohibited. Monologues are acceptable. The original source of the piece must be a present and a digital copy of the cutting should be available at the tournament for verification purposes.
• The selection should be serious in tone
• The selections must be memorized. Students are free to move, but should remember that this is a contest in interpretation, and not in solo acting.