How well do you really know someone? What’s their story? What’s their background? We are midway through the season… And I want to see competitors fully engaged to their characters in their Interpretive Speeches (this includes Biblical Presentation). At this point competitors should have a sense of who their characters really are. I can tell when one is performing a memorized speech and when one is truly visualizing and understanding each and every character. I want every competitor to bring it to the next level. This is the difference between performing and acting.
Kristi and I have developed a resource to bring your Interp to the next level! Our Character Analysis and Worksheets help competitors really process who their characters are. Warning- research and actual thought process may have to be done.
Let me give you some examples- If you are playing the part of a child with cancer- you may want to visit a hospital with cancer patients. Are you connected and understand what they are going through? If you want a character to have a German accent, you may need to go on YouTube to learn how. If you are trying to develop your character of Wilber, in Charolette’s Web, you may need to dig deep to understand loneliness and what a friend would really mean to you. This may sound over the top, but really understanding and developing your characters is pivotal for a well-rounded piece. For my students, this is what I want them to achieve, I want them to understand what they are trying to represent. This is part of the lesson of being in Speech- understanding people or characters in a whole new way.
Our worksheets bring you through the process of developing YOUR characters. The reason I stress your is because, I should not see the same Interpretation twice. Your development of characters should be unique. If you don’t know who your character is or who they are trying to represent- you need to go through the process of figuring it out. The worksheets will help you with…
Emotional Development
Character Analysis
Background
Physical Development
and more!
Here’s what people have said about our worksheets…
“WOW – The Character Analysis and Worksheets is a super helpful document! I was familiar with the concept of character development, but this fleshed it out so thoroughly! It really does separate those performers who have done the work and those who haven’t. It takes the character from two dimensions to three!” -Parent
“These worksheets helped me develop my characters, so I could really visualize who I wanted them to be.” -Student
“I wish I had these when I started Speech years ago!” -Student
My hope is that at the end of the season, students will have more than just “a Speech”. That they will have accomplished more than just memorizing a piece of literature, a play, script, or section of the bible. My hope is for students to have a deeper understanding of characters and people. That this experience in Speech will impact them, as well their audience, for the rest of their lives.