A solo speech class in which each entrant speaks a prose passage entirely from memory, in four age groups with a two- or three-minute limit.
Memorised Prose is a speech class built on one skill: learning a passage of prose so well that it can be spoken without a page in hand. The passage might be an extract from a novel, a short story, an essay or a speech. The entrant stands alone, speaks it to the adjudicator and the room, and is judged on how clearly and convincingly the words come across. It is related to poetry recitation, but there is no rhyme or metre to lean on, so the speaker has to make the sentences themselves sound natural, which is harder than it looks.
In eTalenter data the class appears on two templates, both the speech and drama syllabi of Sydney eisteddfods. It is entered by one performer at a time, boys and girls together, in English. On the larger of the two the age groups are 10 and under, 11 to 12, 13 to 14 and an Open group for 15 and over, with a two-minute limit for the youngest group and three minutes for each older one. The other template runs the class in two-year bands from 7-8 up to 15-16, with two minutes up to age 12 and three minutes from age 13. The data does not say whether the passage is the entrant's own choice or a set piece, so organisers should state that in their own syllabus.
A round runs like any call-sheet speech class. Entrants are called in order, speak their passage and leave when it ends or the time bell rings. Because the work is memorised, the adjudicator is listening for two things at once: whether the words are accurate and whether they are spoken as meaning rather than as a recitation of sounds. A speaker who knows the passage thoroughly can pause, change pace and look at the audience, while one who is still searching for the next line cannot.
Organisers run a memorised prose class because it tests something a read-aloud class cannot: the entrant has to understand the text well enough to hold it in their head. It also sits neatly beside a Prose Reading class on the same syllabus, so a speaker can enter both and show two different skills with the same kind of material. The platform carries the class, the age groups, the time limits and the nominal marking scale; the choice of passage and any copy rule are conditions the organiser sets.
Where Memorised Prose is run
Memorised Prose is run on two templates in the data, both the speech and drama syllabi of eisteddfods held in Sydney, Australia. The eisteddfod tradition of timed, adjudicated speech classes in separate age groups is long established in Australia, and a memorised prose or memorised verse class is a common part of it. This page does not claim wider reach than those two festivals: the age groups and time limits described here are the ones the two templates carry, and other festivals may run a differently named or differently timed memorised class.
- Australia
Key facts
- Individual entry: one speaker, one passage, boys and girls together, in English.
- Content: a prose passage spoken entirely from memory. The data does not say whether it is own choice or set, so the organiser should state the rule.
- Larger template: four age groups (10 and under, 11 to 12, 13 to 14, Open 15 and over). Two minutes for 10 and under, three minutes for each older group.
- Second template: two-year bands from 7-8 to 15-16, two minutes up to age 12 and three minutes from age 13.
- Marking: both templates use a nominal maximum of 10 per performance; no per-criterion marks are printed, so none are asserted here.
- Placings are first, second and third on the larger template; no points are printed for them.
- Idea starters, not rules: a descriptive paragraph from a favourite novel, a short fable retold in the writer's own words, the opening of a short story, a passage from a famous speech, a funny scene from a children's book.
On eTalenter, Memorised Prose is filed under Literary and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 2 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Memorised Prose is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 10, commonly time-limited to 2–3 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Memorised Prose
What a Memorised Prose panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- The templates print no criteria for this class, so none are asserted here. What follows is general advice on what a speech adjudicator listens for in a memorised prose passage, labelled as advice and not as any festival's own rubric.
- Accuracy: the words should be the author's words, with no stumbles, skipped lines or invented phrases. A speaker who has to stop and search for a line loses far more than one who slows down on purpose.
- Meaning over sound: prose carries its sense in sentences, not in line endings. The speaker should show where one idea ends and the next begins through pauses and a change of pace.
- Voice and diction: clear consonants, a steady pace and enough volume for the back of the hall. A quiet, even voice that is understood beats a loud one that is rushed.
- Expression: a modest, believable change of tone for dialogue, description and any humour or sadness in the text. Over-acting a narrative passage usually reads as unnatural in a speech class.
- Time discipline: the passage must fit two or three minutes. Cutting in at the bell, or running far short, suggests the piece was not rehearsed at performance speed.
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Memorised Prose under Scoring Setup, or start from the full recitation & poetry judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Memorised Prose
How entrants and their teachers usually get Memorised Prose right on the day:
- Settle the rules first: whether the passage is your own choice or set, the exact time limit for your age group, and whether a copy must go to the adjudicator. Check with the organiser if the syllabus is silent.
- Choose a passage that reads well aloud and makes sense on a single hearing. Read five or six candidates aloud to a friend and keep the one they follow without effort.
- Mark a clean copy: underline the key words, put a slash at each pause and a double slash at a change of idea. Keep a second, unmarked copy for the adjudicator if one is needed.
- Learn in small blocks, a few sentences a day, then join them. Say each block aloud rather than only reading it silently, because the mouth remembers what the eyes skim past.
- Learn the meaning, not just the words. Put each paragraph into your own words once. A speaker who understands the passage can recover from a slip by following the sense.
- Time the full piece at performance speed against the limit for your age group. If it runs long, cut a sentence or a short paragraph rather than speed up and lose your pauses.
- Rehearse the first and last sentences separately. A confident opening settles nerves and a clean ending tells the room you have finished.
- Practise on different listeners, a relative, a classmate and someone who has never read the text, and ask what they could not follow. Fix those sentences first.
- After the result, ask for the adjudicator's comments if the organiser gives them, and use them to choose a better-suited passage next time.
Frequently asked questions
Is Memorised Prose judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter's templates it's most often run as an Individual entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
Do I have to learn the whole passage by heart?
Yes. The point of the class is that it is spoken from memory, with no page in your hand. Ask the organiser whether you may carry a prompt copy, though most speech classes expect you to speak without one.
Is Memorised Prose the same as Prose Reading?
No. Prose Reading is read from the page, so it is judged on reading skill and interpretation. Memorised Prose is learned and spoken without the page, so accuracy and recall also matter. They sit side by side on the larger template.
How long can the performance be?
On the larger template, two minutes for the 10 and under group and three minutes for the 11 to 12, 13 to 14 and Open groups. On the other template, two minutes up to age 12 and three minutes from age 13.
Can I choose any passage?
The templates do not say whether the passage is own choice or set. Check the organiser's syllabus, and pick something suitable for a stage audience of all ages.
What happens if I forget a line?
Stay calm, pause and pick up from the next idea you remember. The templates print no penalty scheme, so the adjudicator's own judgement applies. Learning the meaning of each paragraph makes it much easier to recover.
What are entrants judged on?
The templates print no criteria for the class. They use a nominal maximum of 10 per performance, which the organiser can change, and the judging advice on this page is general.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full recitation & poetry judging criteria guide, or browse every literary competition item.
Try Memorised Prose in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Memorised Prose, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
