Local monologue competition winners announced

Written By Danielle WIlliams

The winners of Streams Community Hub's 3rd annual Word of Mouth Monologue Competition have been announced. 

Eleven participants between the ages of eight and 17 were chosen to perform live in front of an audience of judges and community residents for the competition finals at Grace Tipling Hall in Shelburne on Saturday (Nov. 25). 

“[The competition] is a way to showcase the talent of the youth of Dufferin County and give them an outlet,” said Juli-Anne James, Streams Community Hub's executive director.  

A list of about 20 monologues written by Canadian playwrights, as well as some AI-generated monologues, were available for the contestants to choose from. Selected from a group of 26 contestants, the finalists were chosen by three judges during the competition's preliminary round. The competition was split into two age groups: junior, 8-12, and senior, 13-17.  

The contestants were judged on a variety of different criteria points, including the introduction, characterization, diction, projection, vocal variety, emotion, tempo, rhythm, focal point and focus.  

The awards were distributed once the contestants concluded their performances, with some of the awards going to students of schools in Shelburne.

The first and second place winners for the junior category are 10-year-old Terrence-Jeffery Hall, coming in first with a performance of “The Great Chocolate Heist” and eight-year-old Maya Abhimanu in second place with “Lefty's Great Escape.” 

The senior category winners are 13-year-old Abigal Amsing in first place, who performed “Lefty's Great Escape,” and 15-year-old Audrey Hawkins in second place, with a performance of “Becoming Me.” 

The Fan Favourite award was given to 10-year-old Jaisrayman Kaur, who performed “The Greatest Chocolate Heist” after receiving 9,212 public votes.  

The newly introduced Bravery award was given to eight-year-old Lionna Hoy-Kenny with a performance of “Lefty's Greatest Escape.”

Four awards were given out to conclude the competition. First-place winners in both categories received $1,000, while the second-place winners received $500. A Fan Favourite award was also given out by public vote, and the Bravery Award was given to the first person who submitted their monologue online. 

Crewson Insurance Brokers' sponsorship has been particularly important in recognizing the critical role of community support. For the past two years, they have generously sponsored the cash prizes. During the event, Ed Crewson, the co-owner of Crewson Insurance Brokers, shared insights into the value of the competition. He also noted how it encourages youth to become better public speakers and convey information effectively.  

“Effective communication is a building block of success for the community,” said Crewson, expressing the benefit Streams Community Hub has in bettering the community.

If you want to see the monologue competition's final live performance, stay tuned for its airing online, which will be announced on Streams Community Hub's social media pages.

The video production team for the competition was led by a Streams program, highlighting the organization's strong dedication to being “youth forward, youth-led, and youth-focused.”

“We're really just trying to keep it as consistent as possible and build on the success, we're hoping in 10 years this will be a national event to look forward to,” said James. 

As the competition grows in popularity, Streams Community Hub hopes to become a Dufferin County-wide event, bringing together participants from various communities in a celebration of creativity and self-expression.