On Saturday December 2nd, Glenbard South hosted its home Speech competition. The theme was Celebrities, with of course an emphasis on Taylor Swift, now named Time magazine Person of the Year. “If you’ve ever seen those random memes of celebrities hung up around the school, that’s our doing,” said Haley Wong, a Speech Team member who competes in Original Comedy. Glenbard South is special for its plethora of unique traditions. “I like that we get to make things our own,” said Abby Anderson, a speech co-captain, “I think our tournaments have a lot of traditions that we have started over the last few years that a lot of schools don’t do.” For example, in between rounds a friendship bracelet table was set up for the competitors, going along with the Taylor Swift theme. Anderson added, “I liked hearing feedback from other schools saying that this was their favorite tournament last year and that we did a lot of unique things that other schools don’t do”.
Hosting a Speech tournament is very different from attending one at another school. “I was less concerned about my own performance and more about how everything was running,” said Anderson. According to Mrs. Candace Vickers, the head Speech coach, “Hosting a speech tournament is a lot more work.” There is a lot to keep track of, including inviting other schools, hiring extra judges, setting up the building, decorating for the theme and much more. But all that work pays off in the end. “The awards are the most fun for me,” said Vickers, “You finally are at the end of the tournament…The kids are having a great time. When we walked into the auditorium with the final awards transcripts, all of the schools were dancing and singing to Taylor Swift music.” Many members of the GBS Speech team made it to finals, meaning they were in the top six in their event. Angelica Buchanan won 1st in Humorous Interpretation, Riven Wisniewski won 1st in Radio, Haley Wong won 2nd in Original Comedy, Anna Nesson won 4th in Poetry, Bella Ramirez & Luciana Moran won 5th in Dramatic Duet Acting and Allison Gray won 6th in Poetry. “Competing for Original Comedy, especially, gives me such a rush because I get to watch so many hilarious performers in one day,” said Wong, “I feel like I’m honing my craft, not only when I’m actually performing, but also when I’m studying the technique of others. Speech is so unique when it comes to this kind of group study, and I absolutely adore it.”
Angelica Buchanan added that, “Speech club has helped me become a better speaker and I love connecting with everyone on the team, and just being there.”
In Speech, “There is definitely something for everybody,” said Anderson, “We have events that are humorous, that are dramatic, if you are in theater it is definitely something that you would be into… We have things like poetry, and radio speaking, things that you don’t necessarily see in other activities.” According to Wong, another reason why the speech team is so special is that “Everyone on the team is so kind and supportive. Every time I reconvene with the team in between rounds, everyone always meets me with such gusto and compassion. Speech is like nothing else I’ve ever experienced.” Isabella Rameriz, a speech team member, agreed with Wong. “My favorite thing about speech is the people. They are all so nice and wonderful.”
The Speech Team is looking forward to their packed season ahead. “I truly feel that I’m growing as a performer from tournament to tournament, and I’m so excited for what the rest of the season holds,” said Wong.
