Dear colleagues,
Once again, welcome to BEO 2020. We have already collected some very good questions and you can find the answers to them below. They have been divided into 4 sections. In the general section, we will answer questions that are relevant to all competition events or that are related to other aspects of the programme. Next up you will find questions and answers related to the presentation events, followed by those surrounding the Debate. Finally, there is a section on all the creative elements, that is, the Song Contest, the Drama Festival, and the Improvisation and Mystery challenges.
This week, I would like to draw your attention to the section on creative events as there is essential information concerning the set-up of the Drama Festival.
Going forward, we will also post information bulletins and practice materials, so make sure you log in regularly.
Best of luck with the ongoing preparation and do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions.
Regards,
Kamila & the Oxford International team
GENERAL
Question:
There seems to be more information in the Guidelines than in the video. Which one do we follow?
Answer:
You should follow the written guidelines; that is the guiding document. The video is an accompanying tool.
Question:
Do I understand it correctly that if my team makes it to the Grand Final, the students participating in the Debate (speakers & advisors) will not be allowed to participate in the Mystery Event?
Answer:
Yes, that is correct, in the Grand Final the students participating in the Debate cannot participate in the Mystery Event.
PRESENTATION EVENTS
Question:
I would like to know if the unexplained phenomena (BEO Country Spotlight) has to be a natural one.
Answer:
No, it does not.
DEBATE
Question:
The issue to be discussed in the debate is not very clear to me and my students since the aim is really broad. Are they going to debate whether the schools have the authority to ban… (debate would be about who has the authority)? Are they going to debate whether digital devices may or may not be used for private use during school hours? (but they are allowed as a teaching tool)? Are they going to debate whether digital devices may or may not be used during school hours by the school’s authority?
Answer:
The core of the debate centres around your first two questions but I would say it does not exclude the third one either as all three are intertwined aspects of the same issue. The aim is broad but naturally narrows down depending on who you are speaking to.
It is important to keep in mind that the students will be assigned a role they must represent throughout the debate. For different roles, the priorities might be slightly different. In addition, as per the debate structure (p. 24), the students are invited to present the view of their role and prioritise their issues.
We will soon post a more detailed guide to the Debate. As we get closer to the event, we will also post some practice materials. For the time being I would suggest having students research the debate topic from the perspective of each role as this gives them a thorough understanding of the subject matter, helps them understand the priorities different stakeholders may have, and exposes them to some key, relevant vocabulary
Question:
I just want to be sure that I may have only one advisor.
Answer:
Yes, this year you can have one or two advisors. Please also note that the actual debate cycle has been shortened.
CREATIVE EVENTS
Question:
Do all the students have to be singing or can I have some students singing and others making sounds of instruments or body sound?
Answer:
During the Song Contest, all students should at some point sing; they do not have to sing the whole time or sing solo acts. If they are chosen as one of the participants, they should contribute to the key aspect of the performance, which is singing.
Question:
Is there a minimum percentage of the lyrics that should be changed for the song contest?
Answer:
The majority of the song should be original. If there are a couple of words or a phrase left in from the original song because they fit the context well, we can typically accept that. But as I said, it should be seen as an original piece otherwise the judges may award lower marks.
Question:
The guideline says that the lights will be grounded. Will they be in the front or back of the white screen? How many bulbs will be there? What’s the power?
Answer:
We have gone through a testing process and the lighting set up will be as follows:
The light source will be ONE photo studio Red Head Light (800w)
The distance between the light and the white screen will be 4 m
The light will be positioned at the centre of the screen, 1.10m above the ground (for health and safety reason the light cannot be on the ground as previously stated!)
From the perspective of the audience, the light will be BEHIND the white screen.
Question:
What will be the fabric or material of the white screen?
Answer:
The white screen is made of white bedding poly cotton sheet; 50% polyester and 50% cotton and it will cover an area of 2.10 m (height) and 3m (width).
It will be stretched across a photography backdrop kit.
Question:
Since this year the drama has changed completely, we have some concerns about the judging criteria. For example, marks given for language (pronunciation, accuracy, fluency, voice articulation and projection) – it is not stated in the guidelines that every student has to talk; what if there is just one student with really good English doing all the lines?
Answer:
First, I would like to emphasize that the brief asks students to produce a short drama, and as such, it should include various characters who interact. This is not a narrated story accompanied by visual effect, nor is this a type of shadow interpretative dance or pantomime.
Just like in the song contest, all (or most) students should, at some point, contribute orally. They do not all need to speak during all scenes but if they have been chosen as one of the participants for this event, they should contribute to the key aspect of the performance, which is a dramatic performance.
Secondly, because the drama happens to take place behind a screen, the language element becomes even more important as each character will literally need to find his/her voice to communicate their contributions without the benefit of facial expressions and subtle gestures.
Finally, I would like to point out that voice articulation and projection actually do not fall into the language category (accuracy, fluency & pronunciation – total of 24 points). It actually falls into the performance skills (authenticity, voice, visual impact – total 24 points); plus there is the category of content of total of 8 points so overall, in theory, a team could actually gain more points from content and performance skills than for language itself.
Question:
If a school decides to have the people who are doing the shapes say their lines, it will be very hard for students to do both things plus paying attention to what is going around on them.
Answer:
Yes, it is possible that it will be challenging for students to do both. However, we see this as an opportunity for the students to try something new and to grow from the experience and learn to think creatively. There is nothing stopping the students from alternating, dubbing for each other (e.g. three make shapes, 3 are the voice behind the shapes and then swap) and/or using various props and lending their voices to them etc.
Question:
What if a set of students was standing aside reading the script?
Answer:
Students will not be allowed to read the script as that would indeed affect the fluency rubric. There will in fact be a member of staff, operating the light source, who will be monitoring that the team is not reading a script.
Question:
Regarding the acting itself, we need to remember that shadow theatre does not really portray acting per se, so, in the rubrics it says that students need to be in character and that they need to position themselves effectively on stage… so, how can the judges evaluate the quality of acting?
Answer:
I would argue the opposite. As previously mentioned, students are lending their bodies and their voices to silhouettes and/or props but they are still very much in charge of bringing those characters to life and conveying their message to the audience and that is acting. Furthermore, positioning behind the screen will become even more important.
Question:
Is a multimedia projector present at every venue for us to use?
Answer:
No there will be no projectors available for this event at any of the venues.
Question:
Do all the students need to be behind the screen?
Answer:
You can have one character appearing in front or / at the side of the screen. Please note, that the space in front of the screen will be limited.
Question:
Will we be able to rehearse at the place?
Answer:
There will be a short scheduled test session (approximately 10 minutes per team) at each centre prior to the event.
You may also have look at these videos to help you get your drama off the ground:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh4LYKIMXyk&t=74s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WqU2tcfwIY&t=288s