Interpretive Categories

 For the adventurous,

these categories
involve taking someone
else’s work, (poems,
plays, stories, etc.)
and making them your
own through your
voice, gestures, and
(for some categories)
movement.

http://www.student.virginia.edu/~voice/
 Interpretation of Prose
 Solo
 Interpretive / Script required
 4-8 minutes

 “(In this category) the reader should not try to

“be” anyone else, nor act out the piece, but
should strive to have the audience lose
themselves into ideas which are being presented;
that is, the reader’s purpose is to make the
printed page come alive for the listeners.”
 Interpretation of Poetry
 Solo
 Interpretive / Script required
 4-8 minutes

 “All the skills of reading aloud, including vocal

flexibility, inflectional variety, clear
articulation, and correct pronunciation, as
well as the use of pause and rate variation,
can be practiced through participation in this
category.”
Farrago
 Solo
 Interpretive / Script required
 4-8 minutes

 "The challenge of farrago is to select

material from a variety of literary genres
(poetry, short stories, speeches, essays,
drama, novels, etc), which addresses a
central specific theme or emotion, and to
interpret the material through oral
presentation."
 Storytelling
 Solo
 Interpretive / Memorized
 4-8 minutes

 “The art of storytelling is older than reading,

dating back to long before printing was invented,
but it is modern too. The storyteller uses vocal
variation and physical movement to suggest
different characters and character relationships
in order to make the story come alive in the mind
of the listener.”
 Solo Acting Humorous
 Solo
 Interpretive / Memorized
 3-8 minutes

 “The material for Humorous Solo Acting shall be

a (funny) cutting taken from drama, or other
literature adapted to the dramatic format with
brief narrative transitions allowed… The material
may be in the form of a monologue or a selection
which includes any number of characters.”
 Solo Acting Serious
 Solo
 Interpretive / Memorized
 3-8 minutes

 “The material for Humorous Solo Acting shall be

a (dramatic) cutting taken from drama, or other
literature adapted to the dramatic format with
brief narrative transitions allowed… The material
may be in the form of a monologue or a selection
which includes any number of characters.”
 Group Acting
 2-7 participants
 Interpretive / Memorized
 6-12 minutes

 “The goal of this category is to provide a

group of students the opportunity of working
together to present a literary script by using
their voices and/or bodies to convey the…
experiences (evident) in the material they
have chosen.”
 Group Interpretation
 2-7 participants
 Interpretive / Memorized
 5-10 minutes

 “Movement is limited to facial expression,

gesture, and positioning. Primary focus of the
performers should be on the audience, not
each other. Eye contact between performers,
if any, should be brief and minimal.”
 Speeches
 For people desiring
a more formal
approach to
speaking, there are
several speech-
related forensics
categories.

http://www.aperfectworld.org/government.htm
 Demonstration Speech
 1-2 Participants
 Original material / 1 note card allowed per
participant
 4-8minutes

 “A demonstration speech explains how to do

something while demonstrating the process at the
same time. The student should choose a topic
that teaches a specialized skill, shows the
construction of an item, or demonstrates how an
object operates.”
 Informative Speaking
 Solo category
 Original material / 1 note card allowed
 2-4 minutes

 “…The speaker will present a brief, well-organized

speech which has the primary purpose of informing…
This category also allows the student to give an
informative biographical speech about a person, living
or dead, or a speech which informatively reviews a
book, a movie, computer software, video or computer
game, or a TV program.”
 Persuasive Speaking
 Solo category
 Original material / 1 note card allowed
 3.5-7 minutes

 “Life situations often result in the need to

convince other people - perhaps to believe
differently than they do at present, to offer a
solution to a problem common to the group, to
take a particular action in response to a current
situation, or perhaps to reinforce and strengthen
current attitudes.”
 Non-original Oratory
 Solo category
 Interpretive / Scripts allowed
 4-8 minutes

 “A presentation in this category should be a

persuasive or inspirational speech, which
has/have been written and/or delivered by
some person other than the participant… the
student should be cautioned to NOT attempt
to mimic the original speaker.”
 Original Work
 For speakers with a
flare for the
creative, a variety
of categories
include coming up
with your own
material.

http://www.creativethinking.net/
 Infomercial
 1-2 participants
 Original material / 1 note card allowed per
participant
 2.5-5 minutes

 The challenge in this category is to create and

present a speech that emulates (recreates) a
television infomercial selling a real or imagined,
product or service. The tone of the speech
should be creative, entertaining, and imaginative.
 Moments in History
 Solo category
 Original material / 1 note card allowed
 3-6 minutes

 “In the Moments in History category, the

speaker will prepare and present a speech
on an historical topic drawn from a
designated decade or era.”
 This year’s period = 1930-1955
 News Reporting
 1-3 participants
 Original material / Scripts allowed (need updating
every 2 weeks)
 5-10 minutes

 “The student(s) will prepare and present a news

program including news, weather, sports and an
editorial. This should look more like the 6:00 News
than Saturday Night Live.”
 A new all-sports broadcast is now an
option.
 Special Events Presentation
 1-2 participants
 Original material / Note card allowed
 3-6 minutes
 “The challenge in this category is to give a speech that is
brief and fits a defined occasion and audience. The tone of
the speech should be creative, entertaining and imaginative.”
 This year’s options are as follows:
 Vacation Blog
 Salute a Hero
 Entertainment Reviews
 Special Events Coverage
 Gossip, Gossip, Gossip
 Impromptu Categories
 For the adventurous,
certain categories
involve coming up
with material right on
the spot.

http://plus.maths.org/issue25/editorial/
 Impromptu Speaking
 Solo
 Spontaneously self-written / 1 note card
allowed
 2 minutes to prepare / 2-4 to present

 “… The speaker will present an “off the cuff”

speech about a common knowledge topic to
be drawn immediately before speaking.
Topics may be a word, phrase, statement, or
non-specific question.”
 Group Improvisation
 2-4 Participants
 Spontaneously group written / 1 note card
allowed per participant
 2 minutes to prepare / 4-5 to present

 "The speakers will create an 'off the cuff'

presentation about a common knowledge topic or
situation. Topics may be a word, phrase, statement, or
non-specific question, which will be drawn immediately
before speaking…. A presentation in this category may
be informative, persuasive, or entertaining."