Audience members were in for a treat when the ULM’s Speech and Debate Forum and Communications Oral Interpretation class presented the Yapalooza. The students’ showcased their talent in presentations such as an informative speech on happiness, a eulogy of “Queen Elizabeth’s Speech upon the Death of Lady Diana”, and Haiku Duets. There were also a few poems and poem fragments ranging from thirty seconds long to ten minutes.

“It was my first time attending the Yapalooza and I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it,” said Kendra Jefferson, Sophomore Toxicology major from Jonesboro. The highlights of the nights were the numerous complications of non-traditional texts. There were complications such as “Love Shouldn’t Hurt” a story where a woman dealing with domestic violence realized, while sitting in a hospital waiting room, there were ways out of her situation.

“I wasn’t planning on staying the entire time but I couldn’t leave my seat because I wanted to know what happened in the end,” said Jefferson on the presentation. The students in the showcase worked on their pieces throughout the semester. “This is something we do in class; we really focused on it within these last three class periods and really wanted to share it with the public,” said presenter Alycia Hodges, Senior Communications and English major from Tallulah.

There were other presentations such as “Simple Things,” a story about a woman who searched for love in a man and eventually realized she wouldn’t find it, she had to find it within herself.  Not only did the Yapalooza teach moral lessons through their presentations but they gave the audience a good laugh as well.