Public speaking & Interp 

In Public Speaking, speakers write or find and present a memorized 10-minute speech about any topic of their choice. Within Public Speaking there are two events: Original Oratory and Informative Speaking. 

Original Oratory (also known as OO): an event in which competitors write and present a speech with the purpose of persuading the audience about their topic. For example, a speaker could be persuading their audience to take action on an issue important to them or to change a way the audience lives their lives.

Informative Speaking (also known as Info): an event in which competitors inform the audience about their topic while using a visual presentation. For example, a speaker might inform their audience about the effects of plastic pollution, or on the discrimination a certain minority faces.

By gaining more confidence in their public speaking skills, improving their ability to synthesize an argument, and strengthening their writing skills, competitors will leave with skills crucial for high school and beyond. 

What is Interp?

Interpretation, or ‘Interp’ as Hawken Speech lovingly calls it, is a category of events where students take a piece of literature, such as a book or movie script, and perform their 10-minute interpretation of it, complete with characterization, blocking (movements), and more. The events in Interp include Dramatic Interpretation, where competitors perform a serious piece, Humorous Interpretation, where competitors give a comedic performance, Duo Interpretation, in which two competitors perform a piece together, Declamation, where a competitor gives their interpretation of a famous speech, and Program Oratorical Interpretation, where competitors use multiple pieces of literature to create a storyline with one main theme or argument. Interp is a great way to develop skills such as public speaking, analyzing literature, and more! it is also a great way for those who love performing in a theatrical setting to jump into speech!

Our Squad

Our squad is incredibly close, and we're all each other's biggest supporters. The Hawken Speech Squad has had a lot of big accomplishments recently. Between sending multiple squad members to prestigious national tournaments and seeing many of them make it to elimination rounds, sending the majority of our squad to the Ohio State Tournament and having 6 people break to elimination rounds, and having one of our competitors final at the NSDA National Tournament, placing 4th out of thousands of competitors in his event, we had a great 2023-24 season. We're excited to see what this year has in store for us, and we're hoping you'll be a part of our squad for the 2024-25 season!

Practice Schedule