A one-dancer category in a national performing arts festival in Jamaica, where a single performer holds the stage alone for four minutes and is scored out of 100.
Dance – Solo is a category in the Dance discipline of the Jamaican national performing arts festival that this template is rebuilt from. One dancer, one routine, nobody to share the floor with. It sits at the bottom of the festival’s size ladder: after Dance – Quartet, Dance – Trio and Dance – Duet, the solo is the last step down, and the template places it just before Dance – Dance Improvisation, the category where the routine is made up on the day.
A solo shows more than any other dance category. With no partner to match and no group to blend into, the panel sees every choice the dancer makes: how the first step is taken, how the dancer uses space, how a hard phrase is handled when tired, how the dancer behaves when the music ends. A good solo has one clear idea, such as a story, a mood, a rhythm or a technical theme, and develops it across the time available instead of stacking steps one after another.
The extract used to build the template lists the category and its limits but prints no definition, no required style and no marking table, so this page does not claim what the festival demands. An organiser running the category should say in the entry notice whether any style is welcome or the routine must be in a stated one, whether recorded music, live music or no music is allowed, whether props are permitted, and whether the routine must be the dancer’s own choreography or may be taught by a teacher.
On the template the item is offered in all seven classes, from the youngest children (ages 3-6) through adults (20 and over) and the combined class. Every class has the same limits: four minutes with a warning bell at three, a score out of 100, both genders in one list, English as the language. Because the entry is a single person, the template records it as an individual entry, which is the natural fit and needs no special handling on the entry form.
A typical performance opens with the dancer already in a deliberate pose or walking into a clear starting position, builds through two or three contrasting passages (for example a controlled opening, a fast or high-energy middle and a held ending), and finishes on a still picture that the dancer holds for a full beat before relaxing. It suits studio pupils, school dancers and adults who want to be judged on their own work, and it is the usual stepping stone before a duet or group piece.
Where Dance – Solo is run
On eTalenter this item is used in two templates. In the Jamaican national performing arts festival template it is assigned to all seven classes (six age bands from 3-6 up to adults aged 20 and over, plus a combined class) inside the Dance discipline, four minutes with a warning at three and scored out of 100. A Sunday-school arts festival template in the United Kingdom also carries a solo dance item, titled ‘Dance Solo’, in four age bands from ‘up to 7′ to ’14-17’, with a five-minute limit and a score out of 50. Solo dance is one of the most widely run categories in school festivals, studio showcases and community arts events, but each event sets its own age bands, time limits, music rules and style requirements, so read the notice of the event you are entering instead of assuming these limits.
- Jamaica (the national performing arts festival the template is built from)
- United Kingdom (a Sunday-school arts festival template that carries the same item)
Key facts
- Exactly one dancer performs one routine; the festival lists it as the smallest of its size-based dance categories
- Open to both genders in one list, with the language set to English on the Jamaican template
- Offered in all seven classes on the Jamaican template, from Class 1 (ages 3-6) to Class 6 (adults, 20 and over) and the combined class
- Four-minute limit with the warning bell at three minutes and a score out of 100; the other template that carries it uses a five-minute limit and a score out of 50
- The festival awards medals against published mark bands (Gold 91-100, Silver 81-90.9, Bronze 71-80.9, Certificate of Merit 65-70.9) rather than first, second and third
- Recorded as an individual entry, so it needs no team or pair set-up on the entry form
- The extract used for the Jamaican template prints no definition and no per-criterion weights for this category, so none are asserted here
On eTalenter, Dance – Solo is filed under Dance, On Stage 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, Dance – Solo is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 4 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Dance – Solo
What a Dance – Solo panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- The source does not print this category’s marking table, so what follows is organiser guidance for agreeing yardsticks with the panel, not rules from the source
- Technique: control of balance, turns, extensions and transitions in whatever style the dancer has chosen, with difficulty that suits the class and is completed cleanly rather than attempted and missed
- Rhythm and musicality: steps land on the beat, accents follow the music, and the dancer can stay in time through a change of speed or a pause
- Choreography and structure: a recognisable opening, development and ending, with variety of level, direction and tempo, and no long stretch of repeated steps
- Use of the stage: the whole performing area is used on purpose, entries and exits are planned, and the dancer does not stay glued to one spot
- Expression and stage presence: face, eyes and body say the same thing as the movement, and the dancer commits to the piece from the first count to the held final pose
- Presentation and discipline: costume that suits the style and is safe to move in, tidy hair and footwear, a music edit that matches the piece, and a finish inside the four-minute limit
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Dance – Solo under Scoring Setup, or start from the full group dance judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Dance – Solo
How entrants and their teachers usually get Dance – Solo right on the day:
- Choose the style the dancer is strongest in and build the routine to show it off, rather than copying a showy piece with moves that are still beyond reach
- Write the routine down in eight-counts, mark where the dancer changes direction, level or speed, and cut or reshape any section that repeats without adding anything new
- Rehearse the opening and the held ending as separate drills; the first four counts set the panel’s impression and the last pose is what they remember
- Film the practice from the front and from the side and watch it with the music off, since faults in line, spacing and posture show up when you cannot hide behind the sound
- Practise the whole piece three times in a row without stopping so that stamina holds in the final minute, then time it against the three-minute warning so the dancer knows where in the routine the bell will fall
- Edit the music to a clean start and a definite last beat, carry a spare copy in more than one format, and ask the organiser how the music is handled at check-in
- Plan for nerves: perform the routine in front of family or classmates at least twice before the day so the first audience is not the panel
- With the youngest classes, keep the phrases short and the patterns easy to remember, and rehearse the walk on and walk off as carefully as the dance
- Ask the organiser in writing whether props, live music, bare feet or a certain costume are allowed, and keep the answer with your entry paperwork
Ready-made event templates that include Dance – Solo
Open any template to preview it in eTalenter and install it as a live, editable event.
| Template | Category | Score label | Competitions |
|---|---|---|---|
| CSMEGB Bible Kalotsavam | Dance | Marks | 4 |
| JCDC National Performing Arts Festival (Jamaica) | On Stage | Marks | 7 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Dance – Solo 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.
What is a solo dance competition?
A dance item for one performer who presents a single routine alone, in front of a panel. The extract used for this template gives no further definition, so check the organiser’s notice for style and staging rules.
Is a solo dance judged on technique or on performance?
On both, in a mix the organiser should publish. The template for the Jamaican festival prints a total of 100 but no per-criterion weights, so an organiser using it should agree the split between technique, rhythm, choreography, expression and presentation with the panel before the day.
How long can a solo dance be?
On the Jamaican template, four minutes with a warning bell at three, in every class. The other template that carries a solo dance item uses five minutes. Always follow the limit in the notice of the event you enter.
Can I use recorded music or props in a solo?
The extract used for the template prints no rule either way. Ask the organiser, and if music is allowed, bring an edited copy cut to the time limit with a clear last beat.
What is the difference between a solo and an improvisation category?
A solo is a prepared routine the dancer has rehearsed. The same template also lists Dance – Dance Improvisation as a separate category, where the movement is made up in response to the music on the day, so register the dancer under the one that matches the plan.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full group dance judging criteria guide, or browse every dance competition item.
Try Dance – Solo in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Dance – Solo, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
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