Performance Studies Commons^™

1990 - 1999: Examining How The Interstate Oratorical Contest Closed Out The 1900s, Judy Santacaterina, Harry Bodell, Jessica Bozeman

National Forensic Journal

This paper examines the top six speeches presented each year during the 1990s at the Interstate Oratorical Contest. Our purpose is to explore how these speeches reflected the political, social, economic and cultural climate of the time as well as the changes our discipline was experiencing in the final decade of the millennium.

The Times, They Were A-Changin': Exploring The Interstate Oratorical Contests Of The 1960s, R. Randolph Richardson, Kathy Brittain Richardson

National Forensic Journal

Since 1874, a handful of American college classrooms have hosted generations of students practicing the art of oratory. Throughout the intervening decades, students involved in the Interstate Oratory Contest have, to varying degrees, addressed the compelling social, political, economic and educational issues of their time. When one considers the shifting socio-political landscape of the 1960s, this decade seems a far cry from the rhetorical contexts that gave rise to speeches for the previous nine decades. Did stock issues give way to Woodstock issues? An analysis of the Interstate Oratory winning orations from the 1960s raises numerous questions. To what extent …

1970-1979: Investigating The Interstate Oratorical Contest During The "Me Decade", Karen Morris

National Forensic Journal

The decade of the 1970s further entrenched the socially progressive values that came to the U.S. cultural forefront in the 1960s. Investing in such activities as the Women's Movement and Vietnam War protests, college students became increasingly vocal about social issues. Those speaking up on such topics included the interstate orators who crafted the IOC speeches of the 1970s. In order to analyze the speeches presented at the Interstate Oratorical Contest between 1970 and 1979, the first part of this paper will explore how this socially important historical time period influenced the speeches themselves. The second section will address the …

Volume 37 - Front Matter, Nfa Journal

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 37 - Full Volume, Nfa Journal

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 37 - Editor's Note, Richard E. Paine, Emily M. Cramer

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

The Inter-State Oratorical Contest In The 1800s: The Beginning Of Organized Collegiate Competitive Speaking, Lisa Roth

National Forensic Journal

The purpose of this article is to explore the beginnings of the Inter-State Oratorical Contest (IOC) and the Inter-State Oratorical Association (IOA) and to examine the characteristics of the Inter-State Oratorical speeches from 1874 to 1899. Through an analysis of the top two speeches from each of these years in regard to topic, evidence, organization, style, and delivery, I identify trends and strategies which appeared in competitive collegiate persuasive speaking in the late 1800s.

Volume 36 - Full Volume

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Is It Prose Or Is It Drama? Distinguishing Events Based On Judging Criteria, Justin J. Rudnick, Anthony Peavy, Balencia Crosby, Alyssa Harter, Cristy Dougherty

National Forensic Journal

Genre distinctions have been a source of confusion and contention in the collegiate forensics community, particularly in terms of distinguishing between appropriate source material for prose and drama. As the most powerful indicators of current forensic performance evaluations, ballots help illustrate the judging paradigms shaping the community. To that end, we conducted a content analysis of preliminary-round prose and drama ballots from the 2014 NFA championship tournament to determine how judges distinguish between prose and drama. Results illustrate substantial similarities in how each event is evaluated by judges. We discuss implications for this distinction in the conclusion of this essay.

How Can Sotl Help Forensic Educators Assess Their Performance?, Leah White

National Forensic Journal

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) is a movement among educators which seeks to acknowledge the work we do teaching as its own form of unique scholarship. SoTL argues the work we do as teachers can be peer-reviewed, critiqued and shared with others in our academic communities. The goal of this paper is to outline how forensic educators can use SoTL approaches to help build an argument about their scholarly activity as illustrated in coaching practice. SoTL provides a frame through which we can articulate the significance of this aspect of our scholarly performance.

Volume 36 - Front Matter

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, Richard E. Paine, Emily M. Cramer

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Impact By Intention: An Argument For Forensics As A High-Impact Practice, Vincent L. Stephens

National Forensic Journal

This essay locates forensics within national discourse about high-impact practices (HIPs) in higher education, as outlined by scholar George D. Kuh. Forensics shares all the characteristics associated with the ten promising practices Kuh (2008) outlined initially. Though Kuh's original overview and expanded list of practices (Kuh, 2016) serve as reference points for addressing HIPs, forensics has not been recognized as a HIP. The essay argues that framing forensics as a HIP could enrich advocacy efforts to start and/or sustain current forensics programs. The article connects the fiscal climate with the assessment paradigm, examines the ways forensics adheres to Kuh's definition, …

Creating The Role Of O'Brien In 1984, Andoni Marinos

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre. It is a detailed account of author Andoni Marinos’s artistic process in creating the role of O’Brien in Minnesota State University, Mankato’s production of 1984 in the spring of 2018. The thesis chronicles the actor’s artistic process from pre-production through performance in five chapters: an early production analysis, a historical and critical perspective, a rehearsal and performance journal, a post-production analysis and a process development analysis. Appendices and works cited are included.

The Direction Of Why Torture Is Wrong, And The People Who Love Them, Donald Hart

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Hart, Donald C., M.F.A. Thesis. The Direction of Why Torture is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them. Mankato: Minnesota State University, Mankato, 2018.

This is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment for the Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre. It is a detailed account of Donald C. Hart's artistic process in directing Why Torture is Wrong, and the People Who Love Them in the fall of 2017 for Minnesota State University, Mankato's department of Theatre and Dance. The paper chronicles the director's artistic process from pre-production through performance in five chapters: a pre-production analysis, a historical and critical …

Volume 35 - Editor's Note, Richard E. Paine, Emily M. Cramer

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Why Forensics Matters: The Development Of Emotional Competence In Competitors, Kelly Michael Young, Avery Henry, John Koch

National Forensic Journal

To explicate our justification for the value of competitive speech activities, we contend that participation in forensics develops critical emotional competencies in students. The narratives used in this study were part of the NSDA’s efforts to create materials that would introduce various individual events to beginning competitors. In 2016, through its Instagram account, the NSDA asked high school competitors to comment on a post about why they chose to compete in their individual events. The NSDA identified the best 12 responses and then interviewed those students. ping and performing pieces in individual events. After examining how signs of emotional competence …

Where Are They Now(?): Two Decades Of Longitudinal Outcome Assessment Data Linking Positive Student, Graduate Student, Career And Life Trajectory Decisions To Participation In Intercollegiate Competitive Debate, Jack E. Rogers, Nicole P. M. Freeman, Arthur R. Rennels

National Forensic Journal

In 1997, Rogers (2002, 2007) launched an ambitious cohort-based study to specifically measure student outcomes from forensic participation with direct, empirical comparisons between a debate and non-debate group over an extended period through college, graduate school, professional careers, and life-trajectory decisions. This monograph offers a continuation of those earlier studies in order to provide almost two decades of empirical performance data and outcomes. In order for the reader to place the current study in context, it is helpful to review a brief update of the applicable literature and a brief explanation of the previous two studies before attempting to interpret …

National Forensic Association: An Update From The President, Karen Morris

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

The Humanistic Value Of Individual Events Participation, Leah White

National Forensic Journal

Forensic educators have long struggled to communicate the value of forensic participation to those not familiar with the activity. Drawing from literature in the field of counseling and student personnel, this paper argues participation in individual events is beneficial because it allows students to engage in what Baxter Magolda (2001) refers to as self-authorship among good company. Using interviews and autoethnographic methods, I investigate how participation in competitive forensics helps students meet personal growth needs. I conclude with suggestions for how forensic educators can communicate the student development goals achieved through forensic participation.

Reflections On Forensic Practice And Civic Education: What Are We Teaching? What Are We Learning?, R. Randolph Richardson

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 35 - Front Matter, Nfa Journal

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Volume 35 - Full Volume, Nfa Journal

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Creating The Role Of Georgie Bukatinsky In "The Full Monty", Erin Horst

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre. It is a detailed account of author Erin Horst's artistic process in creating the role of Georgie Bukatinsky in Minnesota State University, Mankato's production of "The Full Monty" in the fall of 2016. The thesis chronicles the actor's artistic process from pre-production through performance in five chapters: an early production analysis, a historical and critical perspective, a rehearsal and performance journal, a post-production analysis and a process development analysis. Appendices and works cited are included.

Technical Direction Of Frankenstein 1930, Isaac Sawle

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre. It is a detailed account of author Isaac Sawle’s technical direction process for Minnesota State University, Mankato’s production of Frankenstein 1930 in the fall of 2016. This thesis chronicles the author’s process from pre-production through post-production in five chapters: an early production analysis, a historical and critical perspective, a process journal, a post-production analysis and a process development analysis. Appendices and works cited are included.

Directing Time Stands Still, Michael Bradley Sheeks

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre. It is a detailed account of author Michael Sheeks’s artistic process in directing Time Stands Still in the fall of 2015. The thesis chronicles the director’s artistic process from pre-production through performance in five chapters: a preproduction analysis, an historical and critical perspective, a process journal, a post-production analysis and a process development analysis. Exhibits and works cited are included.

Volume 34 - Full Volume, Nfa Journal

National Forensic Journal

No abstract provided.

Inroads To Outrounds: A Hofstedian Approach To Newcomer Integration Into The Culture Of Forensics, Chad Kuyper

National Forensic Journal

This study examines how newcomers to forensic competition in intercollegiate forensics integrate themselves into the larger community of competitors. Specifically, this study takes an intercultural approach and frames the forensic organization as a culture unto itself into which new arrivals must assimilate. To shed further light on this culture, this study determines where members of “forensic culture” are positioned on Hofstede’s cultural spectra. By modifying Hofstede’s original Values Module Survey and administering it to current competitors from around the country, insight can be gleaned into the cultural attitudes of the forensic organization, and the values that guide the practice of …

Creating The Role Of Frederick Barrett In Titanic: The Musical, Adam Val Yankowy

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a thesis submitted in fulfillment of the master of Fine Arts degree in Musical Theatre. It is a detailed account of author Adam Yankowy’s artistic process in creating the role of Frederick Barrett in the Minnesota State University, Mankato’s production of Titanic: The Musical in the Fall of 2015. The thesis follows the actor’s process beginning with the early production analysis in the first chapter. The actor then discusses the work in its historical context followed by a detailed journal of the acting process in chapters two and three. Chapter four is the post-production analysis and the …

The Sound Design Of Antigone, Luke Jacob Walchuk

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

This document is a project submitted in partial fulfillment of the Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre. It provides an account of author Luke Walchuk’s process in creating and implementing the sound design for Minnesota State University, Mankato’s production of Antigone in January and February of 2016. The paper gives a chronological overview of the designer’s process in four chapters: an early production analysis, a historical and critical perspective, a process journal, and a post-production analysis. A fifth chapter provides a process development analysis of the designer’s career as a student of theatre. Appendices featuring production paperwork and other …