The Haines Debate, Drama and Forensics (DDF) team has less than a month to perfect their performances before five students travel to the state tournament in Anchorage. Since the Glacier Bards missed the regional tournament in Juneau due to weather, coach Hannah Bochart said the team was lucky that all its members had already qualified for state.

The Glacier Bards will face stiff competition, she said, as the tournament can include as many as 20 schools.

“State’s tough,” sophomore DDF member Colin Aldassy said. “No one will tell you it’s easy. But we’ve prepared all year and have done really well so far. I have high hopes.”

The state tournament is especially tough for debaters, who must quickly adapt to a variety of debating styles.

“The debating style in Anchorage is different from what we do in the Southeast,” Bochart said. “It’s an interesting challenge to see people present arguments in different ways. Different speaking styles, different values on evidence versus logic, a more aggressive tone during crossfire…It’s a learning curve to suddenly go up against debaters who do things differently. ”

Debaters Selby Long, Sal Chapell, Willa Stuart and Colin Aldassy will argue whether right-to-work laws cause more harm than good in America.

In drama, Maddox Rogers will give a speech on Ken Allen, the infamous “orangutan escape artist” who always found a way to flee his exhibit at the San Diego Zoo.

“It’s really engaging and sweet,” Bochart said. “Maddox is so passionate about telling this story.”

Aldassy will deliver a humorous interpretation of “I Won a Giant Inflatable Banana at the State Fair, Now What?”

“When we read through the script for the first time the team was rolling on the floor laughing,” Aldassy said. “It’s a great piece. I love it.”

Chapell will draw one of three topics to come up with a brief speech. Chapell will have 20 minutes to prepare the piece before delivering it with no notes. Bochart said Chapell has a talent for taking ordinary topics, such as “cranberry sauce,” and delivering a heartfelt speech tied to bigger issues.

“They’ve been doing it all of their DDF career,” Bochart said. “They may take the topic of cranberry sauce and use it to talk about the holidays, and how it is extremely difficult to talk to your family about politics around holiday time,” she said. “They’ve honed that craft over the last four years.”

Stuart will perform an original oratory, arguing that humans are not the only sentient beings on Earth. Stuart’s piece will highlight different forms of life on Earth with heightened intelligence, including the octopus.

The team will also perform a reader’s theater of the melodrama Double Trouble on the Prairie.

Aldassy said he is confident the team will make it to the finals in at least one event.

“The whole team is really great this year,” Aldassy said. “Last year there were only three members, this year we started with eight. The fact that we have grown that much is pretty impressive.”

DDF will host several community fundraisers throughout February with dates yet to be determined. The team will also give a community performance after state, likely in March, Bochart said.

“Keep an eye out on the school’s social media,” Bochart said. “We will also post posters around town when we have an exact date.”