Supplemental Interp Events Starter Guide

What Are Supplemental Events? 

In a given Speech and Debate circuit, supplemental events are typically additional events offered alongside main events that give competitors more opportunities to compete and a broader range of activities to participate in. It is important to understand, however, that some events that may be considered supplemental in one circuit may be considered a main event in others. But for this guide, the focus will be on NSDA's (National Speech and Debate Association) classification of what counts as a supplemental event.

NSDA'S Supplemental Oral Interpretation Events:

• Prose Interpretation:  The interpretation of a cut  prose work 

• Poetry Interpretation: The interpretation of a cut work of poetry 

• Storytelling:  The interpretation of a children's book, folktale, or myth, etc.

What is Poetry and Prose Interpretation?

Poetry Interpretation (POE) is defined as an oral interpretation event that focuses on the adaptation and performance of a chosen work or multiple works of poetry. Prose Interpretation (PRO) is defined as an interpretation event that involves the adaptation of a single or multiple excerpts of written novels, short stories, or any other literary works other than poetry. In both events, the competitor must perform with a written transcript held in a small black binder. Like many other interpretive events, the main purpose of a prose and poetry reading is to convey the meaning, emotions, and message of a literary work to an audience. 

The Basic Rules of Poetry and Prose Reading

• You may choose one or more published novels, books, poems, or any literary work that has a URL or ISBN attached to it. In Poetry Interpretation, competitors must  ONLY use poems in their selections. Likewise, in Prose interpretation, competitors must ONLY use anything that would be considered part of the Prose genre (SEE "Basic Differences in Prose and Poetry " for more details). No other media, like playwrights, movie or TV show scripts, competitor-authored, and news articles, are prohibited. 

• The chosen selection cannot exceed the time limit for that event (in NSDA, the time limit is 5 minutes and 30 seconds; in other circuits like TFA (Texas Forensics Association), the time limit is 7 minutes and 30 seconds). (NOTE: It is generally recommended for the selection to be under the 30-second grace period. 

• The selection or script must be organized in a small black binder, where the competitor must flip through the pages while performing their piece. 

• Other than the binder, no props, furniture, or costumes are allowed while performing. The only acceptable ways to perform a prose or poetry interpretation are to use the binder as a prop or to pantomime (See the novice guide for blocking for more details).

Basic Differences in Prose and Poetry  

Although both events are similar in presentation, some notable key differences make Prose Interpretation and Poetry interpretation unique  from one another: 

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: 

• Poetry is defined as "writing that formulates a concentrated imaginative awareness of experience in language chosen and arranged to create a specific emotional response through meaning, sound, and rhythm".  

• Prose is defined as "a literary medium distinguished from poetry especially by its greater irregularity and variety of rhythm and its closer correspondence to the patterns of everyday speech". 

To put it simply,  the main difference between prose and Poetry is that poetry follows a distinct rhyme and rhythm while prose does not. Although many different forms of Poetry don't have a set organizational style, it is generally understood that Poetry emphasizes the arrangement of language. Prose, on the other hand, focuses more on communicating ideas naturally. It is also important to note that, because Prose is a broad spectrum, it can encompass many literary genres. 

What counts as Prose includes: novels, short stories, written biographies, written autobiographies, and memoirs.

Because of the organizational difference between the two genres, the performance styles of Prose and Poetry can vary. For instance, many prose competitors typically adopt a very conversational style, as if they're directly having a conversation with the audience or judges. Poetry competitors have a wider variety of ways to deliver their performances.  Some competitors may choose to incorporate the rhythmic style of their selections to capture the essence of the poem, while others may adopt the conversational style of a prose piece. These adaptations are really dependent on the poems the competitor chooses to interpret and the message they are trying to convey.

Structure

Like all other interpretation events, prose and poetry follow a specific dramatic structure that helps guide the audience's and judges' understanding of the selection:

1. Teaser-  This is the very first part of the Prose or Poetry reading. The purpose of the teaser is to help set up the main idea or theme of the prose or poetry selection. Typically, in a teaser, a competitor may establish the main character(s), the conflict, or a recurring setting and/or theme of the entire selection. The recommended time for a teaser is 30 seconds to 1 minute. 

2.  Intro-  The intro comes directly after the Teaser. The purpose of the intro is to explain exactly why the competitor chose those works and what impact or statement they would like to make using the selected prose or poetry. In this portion of the reading,  the competitor is required to close their binder and recite their intro from memory. In this part of the interpretation, the competitor must also cite all literary selections and authors they chose to use for the performance. (NOTE: The intro is the ONLY part of a prose or poetry interpretation that the competitor themselves should write). The recommended time for an intro is 45 seconds to  1 minute. 

3. The rest of the piece-  The rest of the piece is all about pacing and story structure. This may look different depending on whether you're performing a prose or poetry piece. In Prose Interpretation, it is integral that the rest of the piece follows a traditional story structure: rising action, climax, falling action, and resolution. However, the storyline structure for Poetry is more obscure given the nature of poems themselves. It is suggested that competitors try to highlight a theme throughout the performance and create a clear emotional progression that allows the audience and the judge to follow the poem's or poems' development. The time for the rest of a Poetry or Prose piece is dependent on the guidelines of the circuit the competitor is competing in. 

Choosing and Cutting

Choosing:

When choosing a prose or poem, it is important to not only have a basic understanding of what the medium you're choosing is about, but also have a reason as to why you may want to interpret that piece of media. 

When choosing your selections, consider the following questions:

• What is an issue or general topic that you're interested in discussing? This could be a social issue, a personal struggle, or just something you care about. 

• Are there any books or poems that you genuinely enjoyed reading?

• If you already have a prose or poem you want to interpret, how do you personally connect to this work, and or how does this relate to the topic you're interested in exploring? 

• What is the overall theme and conflict of the poem or prose selections?

These types of questions provide a general baseline for narrowing down your selections and give you an idea of how you may want to structure your script.

Cutting: 

The process of selecting literature and reducing it to the event's time limit while maintaining the integrity and narrative of the original prose or poem(s). There are many technical aspects to cutting, but for now, the focus will be on general tips and basics. 

Basic Tips for Cutting Prose and Poetry

• When cutting your piece, it is important to maintain a cohesive narrative for the audience to follow. Look for pivotal moments that make up the beginning, middle, and end of the work that you're trying to adapt. Always refer back to the basic structure of how a Prose or Poetry Interpretation is supposed to be formatted and use that as a guide for the way you cut your piece.

• If you're trying to adapt multiple works into one piece, the last point still applies. In fact, when cutting and adapting multiple works of poetry or prose, it is extremely important to weave each selection into a single overarching narrative. When doing this, find points in the selections that have overlap or commonality. These points will serve as transitions between selections. 

• Although cutting involves shortening an original literary work to fit a narrative, it is generally recommended that you don't alter or add words to the original text.

Quick Notes on Blocking & Binder Tech

Like all interpretive events, effective communication is through the use of blocking, the intentional placement and movement to support the meaning and effectiveness of a performance. Because blocking is a technical aspect that applies to all interpretation events, this guide will not cover the basics of using blocking. For a more in-depth rundown of blocking, check out the "Blocking" novice guide. Instead, this guide will focus on the technical aspects of movement specific to Prose and Poetry.

         Your Binder Is Your Best Friend- Unlike HI, DI, Duet, and Storytelling, a lot of the blocking is reliant on the way you use your physical manuscript throughout the performance. Your binder can be incorporated into most, if not all, of the transitions and characterization of your piece. This can be effective whether you flip through the pages in the binder or use it to represent an object of some kind. However, it is also important to remember that although it is encouraged to use your binder as a prop, in Prose and Poetry, it is recommended that, for most of the performance, you hold your binder open, facing you, while you do your blocking and page turns. 

      Transitions- As previously mentioned, your binder can be used to communicate transitions in characters or scenes throughout the performance. A specific way to do this is to mix the transitional blocking with the page turns in your script. Specifically, whenever you want to signal any change, this also includes a change in selection if your piece is woven, have the page flip reflect that by either slowly shifting or even popping into the new character while turning the page. 

The best way to learn any interpretation event is by observing past performances. Here are some good performances from National Finalists to reference when trying to learn and improve in Prose and Poetry Interpretation:

What is Storytelling?

Storytelling is an interpretive event in which a competitor selects a published children's book, myth, folktale, or fairytale, cuts it, and performs it, with the option to use a chair. It is often called a "mini HI" because it shares many similarities with Humorous Interpretation, including tech, structure, and rules

Rules (NSDA)

Note- This guide covers NSDA rules for storytelling as a supplemental event at the NSDA National Tournament. Rules may differ from state to state for Storytelling as a main event at local tournaments.

• There is a 5-minute time limit, with a 30-second grace period.

• The story must be a single published story, anecdote, tale, myth, or legend, and must be retold without props or notes. It must be fully memorized.

• Students cannot add their own original material to the story (outside of the intro)

• Optional use of a chair is permitted. If a student chooses to use the chair, they may select the chair's original position before they begin their performance. Throughout the performance, the chair must remain in its position, and all four legs must remain on the ground. Competitors cannot kneel or stand on the chair.

Structure

1. Teaser- In this segment of your performance, you will give the audience a taste of the story. Here, you will generally establish the characters, setting, and the main issue in the story. Recommended time is 45-60 seconds.

2. Intro- This is the ONLY part you will write yourself. Here, you will include some sort of humor, like a joke (not required but strongly recommended), and a small overview of the piece and/or the moral if your story has one. End the intro with the story's title and author. Since you have a very limited time for your performance, keep the intro as short as possible, ideally around 30 seconds.

3. The rest of the piece- This is exactly what it sounds like. You will perform the rest of the piece, picking up right where you left off before the intro or in the next scene. Make sure you have a clear plot line.

Choosing and Cutting a Piece

When choosing a story, first and foremost, pick something you like. If you do not like your piece, it will show in your performance. Since you have so little time to tell your story, make sure it has a clear beginning, middle, and end so the audience can follow it easily. A story with some sort of narrator (whether 1st person or 3rd person) is also highly recommended, not only for clarity's sake but also because some judges consider the presence of a narrator a key part of Storytelling. While not necessary, it is also recommended that your story have a moral. Since these are children's stories, these morals are generally much simpler than the overarching message of most HI pieces.

Children's stories are generally already short, so there usually isn't too much that needs to be cut. If you do need to cut, make sure you keep track of the story's beginning, middle, and end, and only cut lines that do not further this plot.

Blocking, Tech, and Tips

Most of the tech for Storytelling is very similar to that of Humorous Interpretation. You will use unique voices and postures to distinguish between characters, pop between characters, pantomime objects and actions, and create sound effects. For more information on these, see the Humorous Interpretation, Blocking, and Characterization guides.

The key difference in blocking for Storytelling is that competitors may use a chair if they wish, and most do. As mentioned before, the competitor may choose the chair's original position, but once the performance begins, they cannot move the chair. Throughout the performance, competitors may alternate between sitting on the chair and performing around it, or interacting with the chair in other ways. Judges often reward creative use of the chair, so consider what else it could represent in your story. Past competitors have used the chair as a bike, ballet barre, pot, and more.

Since most Storytellings involve a narrator, competitors often pantomime the actions the narrator describes, only popping into specific characters for dialogue or to have them act out something the narrator just said.

Good luck!