Forensics: Living a Life of Drama
by Mary Strnad
Drama is a part of every teenager’s life, but for those on Hanover High School’s forensics team, drama becomes something to look forward to rather than to avoid.
The HHS forensics squad competes in several tournaments each season, a season that begins in January and ends May 1 with two state competitions. The 1A state contests are held in Salina, one called State Championships, a three-round invitational tournament with preliminary, semi-final, and final rounds, and the other being State Festival, a tournament format that includes a scheduled one-round performance. It is more difficult to qualify for State Champs, but it is an honor to qualify for either.
Students select from nine competition events at the beginning of forensics season. Here is a brief outline of those nine:
Acting Events
Prose: a 7-minute event in which students present a non-memorized literary selection, paying attention to gestures, facial expressions, distinct voices for each character, and body language.
Poetry: a 7-minute event in which students present a non-memorized poetry selection or series of poems that depict a specific theme. Once again, students must pay particular attention to voice, facial expression, body language, and especially emotional context.
Serious Solo and Humorous Solo: 10-minute memorized events in which students perform a dramatic or comedic literary work. They are able to incorporate one chair into their performance.
Duet Acting: a 10-minute event involving two actors who develop either a dramatic or humorous portrayal of a script. The duo may use two chairs and a table in their presentation.
Improvised Duet Acting: a 4-7- minute event in which students present an improvised skit after being given 30 minutes to prepare. They may incorporate two chairs and a table into their performance which, oftentimes, represent something other than their true purpose. For instance, a table can become a “boat” or a “circus tent,” depending on the duo’s skit. To begin the process, students draw from three containers marked “characters,” “settings,” and “situations.” When the draw is complete, the duet works with two characters in a strange setting in an even stranger situation.
Speech Events
Forensics also offers students the opportunity to perform speech events if the acting bug hasn’t bitten them yet.
Informative: a 7-minute event in which a student presents information on any topic of his/her choosing. These are memorized and can range from everything a person ever wanted to know about the game “Monopoly” to all the important uses of sunflowers.
Original Oration: a 10-minute event in which a student attempts to persuade his/her judge to believe or think like he/she does. This is also a memorized performance and topics can range from “Helicopter Parents” to “masculine sensitivity.”
Extemporaneous Speaking: a 7-minute event that requires knowledge of current events. A performer draws three questions from a container, all of which relate to a current news topic. One is selected and the presenter then retires to a preparation area where 30 minutes are allowed for speech development. One note card is allowed in this division.
In a typical tournament, performers will face one judge in each of three preliminary rounds, then three judges in the final round if their preliminary scores allow them to advance. Each performance during the preliminary rounds of an invitational tournament earns team points, with trophies or plaques awarded to the top three “Sweepstakes” teams.
Becoming an active member of forensics provides students with an opportunity to develop not only their acting skills but also their prowess in public speaking. They also are introduced to a diverse student population who shares their passion for drama.
