Category: Open Interpretation

NEW on Lasting Impact!: Scripts for Competition and the Stage

Posted on by Heather Neumann

We’re excited to announce that scripts are now available in the SHOP at Lasting Impact!—a growing collection of thoughtfully crafted works designed for speech competitions, one-act festivals, and full theatrical productions.

Whether you’re a student preparing for competition, a coach searching for quality material, or a director looking for meaningful scripts for your program, these works were created with purpose, performance, and impact in mind.

Explore the full collection here:
https://lastingimpact.info/product-category/scripts/

What You’ll Find at Lasting Impact!…

1. Competitive Scripts

Perfect for interpretive speech events, these scripts are crafted to:

  • Highlight strong characters and clear themes
  • Fit within competitive time limits
  • Offer flexibility for creative interpretation
  • Provide emotional depth and clarity

These pieces are ideal for students who want material that is engaging, followable, and judge-friendly, while still allowing room for originality and personal voice. These scripts are high quality, ready for you to make your own! Whether you are an individual looking for a DRAMATIC, OPEN, or HUMOROUS Interpretation or you are a dynamic DUO looking for the perfect INTERP… look no further! We have variety of SCRIPTS… and more will be posted monthly!

2. One-Act Plays

Our one-act plays are designed for:

  • Speech and debate competition
  • School performances
  • Festivals and showcases

They offer strong storytelling, manageable casts, and themes that resonate with both performers and audiences—making them excellent choices for programs looking for quality material without the commitment of a full-length production. One Act plays are typically between 20-40 minutes in length. They have more to cut, but are a great option for competition.

3. Full-Length Plays

For theater programs seeking meaningful, performance-ready material, our full-length plays provide:

  • Compelling narratives
  • Rich characters
  • Clear themes
  • Opportunities for ensemble and lead performers

These scripts are ideal for schools, community theaters, and homeschool groups looking for stories that challenge performers and engage audiences. Our collection has been written, published, and produced by Heather Neumann, founder of Lasting Impact! These plays are not all posted yet, but will be available in 2026 for production. Contact heather@lastingimpact.info for rights and royalty information. Plays include…

  1. Light in the Darkness – An Adaptation of Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables
  2. A Christmas Carol
  3. Pirates of Penzance ~ A Play with Music
  4. Pride and Prejudice
  5. Little Women
  6. The Importance of Being Earnest

Written and Curated with Experience

All scripts on Lasting Impact! are written or curated by Heather Neumann—author, coach, and educator who has worked with thousands of students and coached dozens of National Champions.

Heather Neumann is an author, playwright, and nationally recognized speech coach who has worked with thousands of students and coached numerous Speech Champions. She is the author of The Ultimate Guide to Interpretive Speech and Lasting Impact’s Speech Grab and Go, as well as multiple stage adaptations, including Light in the Darkness, inspired by Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables. Her work centers on meaningful storytelling, clarity of interpretation, and as always, a lasting impact!

Heather finds deep joy in working with young performers, helping them discover their voice and the power it carries to impact the world. With a gift for transforming timeless literature into accessible and compelling dramas for students and adults of all ages. Heather’s work is infused with purpose, beauty, and grace. Her greatest delight is in revealing the love of the Father through every performance. She treasures her faith, her family, and the way theater can draw hearts closer to Jesus.

But success has never been measured by awards alone. These scripts reflect years of experience understanding:

  • What works on stage
  • What resonates with judges and audiences
  • What challenges and grows students
  • What builds confidence, creativity, and communication skills

Each piece is created with the belief that performance is not just about winning—it’s about growth, connection, and lasting impact. If you believe you have a public domain or an original script that you feel is competition and Lasting Impact! worthy, contact heather@lastingimpact.info

Why Choose Lasting Impact! Scripts?

✔ Competition-ready
✔ Stage-worthy
✔ Student-centered
✔ Coach-approved
✔ Purpose-driven

Whether you’re preparing for a tournament, selecting a play for your program, or looking for meaningful material that stretches performers, these scripts were written to serve both excellence and heart!

We invite you to browse the growing script collection and find the piece that fits your students, your program, and your goals.

View Scripts Here:
https://lastingimpact.info/product-category/scripts/

Because the right script doesn’t just fill time on stage—it tells a story worth sharing.

Comedy v. Tragedy – Open to Interpretation

Posted on by Kristi Eskelund

"Woe!  Woe to me!  I have to do my funny piece after a tragedy!?"

I hear it all the time.... Students doing dramatic material bemoan the fact that funny wins.  Students doing funny material hate walking into a room where judges are wiping away tears.  If Dramatic Interpretation and Humorous Interpretation are separated into different rooms, the conflict doesn't occur, but I maintain that there is room for every place on the emotional spectrum in Open Interpretation...

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Drama, Drama, Drama!

Posted on by Heather Neumann

I believe the strength of your speech can be linked to the strength of your script (what you have created for competition). However a Dramatic Interpretation is far more involved and has much more depth to be based on script alone. For a great Dramatic Interpretation or a dramatic Open, Duo, or even Original Interpretation to be created, there must be rich content from which to grow. When looking for a script, piece of literature, or play there are several considerations to think about:

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Embracing Open Interpretation

Posted on by Kristi Eskelund

Open Interpretation - it’s an event in which competitors are always trying to second guess how to line themselves up in the competition room:

“No, I can’t go in with my humorous piece after you made the judges all cry!”

“Well I’m not going in after your funny piece and just depress them all either!”

It’s also one of the last events to get filled with judges:

“It’s just so…so…open.”

Let me tell you exactly why I love all that ‘openness’ in this event.

Interpretation is really about story telling at its most basic level, and stories run the full emotional gamut of things we feel as people.  We love to laugh with good old belly laughs.  We need to be moved at the deepest level to tears.  But there is a LOT of space between those two extremes where most of us operate most of the time.  The Open Interpretation strikes there, at that mid-zone along the emotional spectrum...

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