Lyrical/Modern Competition: What It Is, Where It’s Run and How It’s Judged

A dance section in which the performer shows lyrical or modern movement, shaped by the feeling of the music, in a routine of up to three minutes marked out of 100.

Lyrical/Modern is a combined dance genre. Lyrical movement lets the emotion of the music, and of its words if it has them, drive the choreography, blending the line of ballet with the freedom of jazz and contemporary. Modern movement uses weight, breath, contractions and release rather than fixed classical positions. Entered together under one title, the section rewards a dancer who can make a smooth, felt performance out of either vocabulary, or a mix of the two.

A round is a single performance on the stage floor. The dancer or pair is announced, the music starts and the adjudicator watches how the piece is built: a clear opening, a development that grows in intensity, and an ending that feels chosen rather than simply stopping with the track. Strong entries show control in slow, sustained movement, clean turns and extensions, and a face and body that carry the same story. A routine that is only a chain of steps, however clean, reads as less than one that holds a single idea from first count to last.

On the template this page is written from, Lyrical/Modern is one of fourteen dance genres offered in every age group. It is a solo section for a Petite group (5 and under), then for 7 and under, 9 and under, 11 and under, 13 and under, 15 and under and 16 and over. Each solo group from 7 upwards is split into Pre-Open and Open sections, and the same genre is also run as a duo or trio in seven age groups, which brings the template to 20 groups for this one genre. Boys and girls compete together, no language is needed, entries run up to three minutes and each is marked out of 100 under the label Marks.

The syllabus prints no criteria or mark bands for this genre specifically, so none are installed and the adjudicator’s own sheet decides; overall results use the template’s printed bands from Pearl up to Diamond (92 and over), with First, Second, Third and Highly Commended as placings. For a coordinator using eTalenter the section is entered like any other item: register the dancer in the right age and level group, record the adjudicator’s mark out of 100, and the placing follows within that group. Check that the dancer is entered in Lyrical/Modern and not in the separate Contemporary section.

Where Lyrical/Modern is run

In eTalenter’s data Lyrical/Modern appears on one Australian multi-style dance challenge, where it is run in 20 age and level groups. Lyrical and modern sections are also a regular part of dance eisteddfods and competitions in countries with a studio dance tradition, though the exact title and the way the two styles are combined vary from event to event, so this page does not claim a wider reach than the data and general practice support.

• Australia
• United Kingdom
• United States
• Canada

Key facts

• Solo entry for the Petite group and for 7, 9, 11, 13 and 15 and under and 16 and over; also offered as a duo or trio in seven age groups, which the template treats as a team entry.
• Boys and girls compete together; no language is required.
• Solo groups from age 7 upwards are split into Pre-Open and Open sections: 13 solo groups and 7 duo/trio groups, 20 in all.
• Time limit in the template: 3 minutes. Marks out of 100 under the label Marks.
• Results use printed bands from Pearl up to Diamond (92 and over); no genre-specific criteria are printed, so the adjudicator’s sheet decides.
• Idea starters, not rules: a piece built around one image such as tide or a letter being read, a modern phrase that melts into a lyrical finish, or a duo that mirrors and then separates to tell a short story of leaving and returning.

On eTalenter, Lyrical/Modern is filed under Dance and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.

Across the templates that use it, Lyrical/Modern is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 3 minutes where a limit is set.

What judges look at in Lyrical/Modern

What a Lyrical/Modern panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:

• Technique and control: secure alignment, clean turns, extensions and balances, with sustained movement held without wobble or rush.
• Fluidity and phrasing: movement that flows from one shape to the next, with breath and momentum visible rather than a series of stopped poses.
• Musicality: phrasing that follows the shape of the music, not only its beat, and a change of energy where the music changes.
• Expression and storytelling: a clear feeling or idea sustained from first count to last, carried by the face and eyes as well as the body.
• Choreography and use of space: a shaped piece with a beginning, development and ending, using the whole stage rather than staying in one spot.
• For duos and trios, unison and partnering: matched timing and lines, safe, controlled contact and a visible relationship between the dancers.

Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Lyrical/Modern under Scoring Setup, or start from the full group dance judging criteria guide.

How to prepare for Lyrical/Modern

How entrants and their teachers usually get Lyrical/Modern right on the day:

• Choose music with room for contrast, a quiet opening and a clear lift, so the piece can show a build. Cut it cleanly to three minutes and rehearse with the exact edit.
• Pick one idea or emotion and test every phrase against it. If a section does not serve the idea, replace it.
• Practise slow, sustained movement on its own: balances, extensions and controlled lowering to the floor look easy only when the technique underneath is secure.
• Rehearse the opening and the final pose until they are exact, because the adjudicator remembers how a piece starts and ends.
• Work on performance to the whole room: eyes up, face engaged, and movement that reaches the back of the stage, not only the front row.
• Check the entry level honestly. Pre-Open is for a dancer who has not placed first in a restricted or open section of that genre; entering the wrong section risks disqualification.
• For duos and trios, rehearse unison with the music, not with counting aloud, and agree one clear recovery plan if a lift or transition goes wrong.

Frequently asked questions

Is Lyrical/Modern 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 the difference between lyrical and modern dance?

Lyrical dance is driven by the emotion and phrasing of the music and blends ballet, jazz and contemporary technique. Modern dance uses weight, breath and release rather than classical positions. In this section the two are entered together, so a dancer may use either or blend them.

How long is a Lyrical/Modern entry?

The syllabus on this template gives three minutes for solos and for duo and trio dances. Other events set their own limits, so check the syllabus of the event you are entering.

Is Lyrical/Modern the same as Contemporary?

No. On this template Contemporary is a separate genre with its own groups, so check which section a dancer is entered in. Both are expressive, but Contemporary leans on floor work and release, and Lyrical/Modern on flowing, music-led phrasing.

What is the difference between Pre-Open and Open?

On this template, Pre-Open is for a dancer who has not placed first in a restricted or open section of that genre at any eisteddfod, and Open is for one who has. The split is printed for solos from age 7 upwards, but not for Petites or for duos and trios.

Want the full judging picture? Read the full group dance judging criteria guide, or browse every dance competition item.