Advisors:
Participation Fees:
- Forensics - $40.00
- Drama - $40.00
What is Drama?
Drama is a theater play that is normally performed on a stage of some kind. It is performed by actors. It normally tells a story of some kind.
How do I Join?
You can join by going to Mrs. Hawks room on the specified dates.
There are about 2 plays per year and there is usually around 20 students who join.
Why should I Join?
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Spend time w/ friends
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Looks great for college
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Build up self-confidence
Plays from the past:
Do I Have to Perform?
No! If you do not want to perform you can help backstage, help with lights and/or sound, or you can help the actors do their hair and makeup.
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~Drama News~
There will be a play at the Iron River Windsor Auditorium called "Grease". There will be FP and WIC students in the play. Grease will be performed for the public on June 5, 6, and 7. The FP students that are involved include Kim Beck, Megan Pacer, Ashleigh Hardy, Joni Toivonen, and Jonathon Korhonen. |
Forensics
Forensics is the art of public speaking, and Forest Park has its very own team!!! From poetry and storytelling, to broadcasting and sales pitching, this extra curricular is one of the most enjoyable and useful things for students to experience. Not only does it hone speaking and presentation kills that will be useful later in life, but it is one of the most fun and exciting ways to get involved with fellow students.
Forensics is more than just telling stories and pitching sales. Within this club are two main branches, and within those six more categories to choose from. They range from interpretation of a written piece to reporting on the most current news around the world, and each one requires something different from the students participating in it. Some categories require that students perform a piece based on their interpretation of it, and others involve the student not knowing what they will perform until they arrive at the meet.
Basics: Forensics begins in late February and ends sometime in early May, depending on how far the teammates make it in competition. In this club, a student will choose a piece of literature to perform or a topic of interest to use in another category. (a poem/story, a topic to inform people about, or a product to make a sales pitch about.) Practice begins when the piece or topic is found and mostly memorized or researched. Students can sign up for times and days to practice in Ms. Colville's room, and need to practice on their own time at home as well. They also need to consider the proper wardrobe, as there is a certain dress code. Students are not to wear costumes that will be suggestive of their piece, and it is encouraged to wear comfortable and appropriate clothing, because the meets can last all day. Ms. Colville is the
current coach of the Forest Park forensics team, and uses the school van to transport students to and from the meets.
Competition: Once students arrive at a meet or invitational, they need to be registered and make sure they have everything they need to present their piece or topic. Those who are in categories that give them their topic should have all the materials they need to prepare for their presentation. After registration, students are given a code made of 2-3 letters corresponding to the school and the category they are in. There is usually a general meeting for all students at the meet, and then individual rounds of competition begin. When a student is in a round, they are to have their cell phone turned to silent or completely off. If a cell phone rings during another person's performance, the student who owns it could be disqualified. There are usually three rounds of competition in each category, depending on how many students are
participating. The first two occur in the morning, and then after lunch the third round is held. Students with the highest scores are then sent to and extra round called the "Power Round". The judges then calculate the results of the meet, and awards are presented to the winners. The first few meets of the forensic season are invitationals, and do not determine how far a student will go in the competition. Then students compete in the District, Regional, and finally State competitions. In order to move on to the next meet a student must place within the top four competitors. This year, the top four plus two alternate competitors are being allowed to move on the the State competition, which is being held at the University of MI in Flint.
| Dramatic Interpretation: |
Public Address: |
| Prose- Pieces are chosen and cut from a book. The student will take the most important or interesting parts of the plot and condense it into the time limit, which is 5-8 minutes. |
Sales- Students will choose a product to research with the object of creating a sales pitch for it. They will create some sort of poster board as well a bring in multiple props to support their pitch. |
| Poetry- A poem is chosen and then memorized to be presented within 5-8 minutes. Multiple poems with similar themes or meanings can also be chosen. |
Broadcasting- Students are given a news copy of current events of today's news from which to extract information with which they will create a news broadcast. They have 30 minutes to gather their information, cut it out, and create a news broadcast with an editorial of their own that should last 1 minute. The entire broadcast should be 5 minutes exactly. |
| Storytelling-A student (w/ the help of their coach) will find a story that falls under the theme chosen for that year (myths, legends, bedtime stories) to be presented in 5-8 minutes. |
Informative-Students will choose a topic of interest, research it, and create a poster board or other visual aid/prop. The main point is to inform the judges of things they were not aware of before in a way that keeps them interested for the allotted time of 5-8 minutes. |
| Dramatic Interp.- The most important parts are cut from a play or screenplay, memorized, and presented within 5-8 minutes. |
Extemporaneous- Students are provided with 3 questions pertaining to current events and have 30 minutes to research the answers using whatever information they have brought with them. They will also use those 30 minutes to write a speech that answers the question. Then they will present the speech to judges. |
| Duo- Two people will present a piece together. It can be a story, a play or screenplay, or a cutting from a book. The partners are not permitted to look at or touch each other during the performance, which also ranges from 5-8 mins. |
Oratory- A topic of interest will be chosen, and the student will take a position based on their opinion of the topic. In their speech, the student will present information in a way that is meant to convince the audience of their position. |
| Multiple- A group of students perform a condensed version of a musical together, also not allowed to look at or touch each other during the 10-15 minute performance. |
Impromptu- Students have 7 minutes to choose a topic from the choices given, read through it, form an informative speech pertaining to that topic, and present the speech (which should last 5 minutes). |
| * The use of stools or chairs as props is allowed for each of these categories. Short introductions including the title and author need to be written.* |
*The use of internet access is allowed for those in broadcasting and extemporaneous categories* |
Want to join Forensics?
If you think making a news broadcast, acting out a play or movie, or traveling sounds like fun, we are ALWAYS looking for more members of our team! And 
joining forensics is really easy to do! If forensics is something you might be interested in, just come talk to Ms. Colville in her room at any time!!! Even though the season is almost over =( you can join up at any time throughout the year. This gives you more time to start figuring out which category you might be interested in, what your strengths are, and what you might need to work on. Plus, learning the more specific rules early on gives you a HUGE step up at competitions. Also, if you join too late to compete, but still want to be involved,
coming along with the team to observe others perform in their categories is one of the most helpful things you can do. Not only does it give you a sense of your competition for next year, but it's really really fun!!! As for actually joining the team, it couldn't be easier. Just go to Ms. Colville's room when the first announcement of the start of the season is made. You will need $40 to participate in the district competition, but it does not need to be paid right away. After the first couple of meetings, you will have your category picked. Your piece or topic should be chosen about 3-4 weeks before the first invitational, and should be memorized by either the first or second meet.
