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

A lyrical dance performed to a song or slow piece without acrobatic tricks, as a solo, duo or trio, small group or large group, scored out of 100.

Straight Lyrical is a genre of dance in which the movement expresses the words or mood of a piece of music, usually a song with a slow or moderate tempo. It borrows from ballet and jazz: sustained extensions, controlled turns, falls and recoveries, and flowing arm lines. The word ‘straight’ marks the difference from Acro Lyrical, the neighbouring genre on the same Sydney one-day dance challenge template this page is written from, where acrobatic skills are part of the routine. In Straight Lyrical the story is carried by dance technique and emotion alone.

The template offers it in every entry type: solo, duo or trio, small group and large group. Entries are placed by age division, counted as at 1 January 2026 and running from 4 and under to 17 and over, and solo dancers are also placed into a section (Novice, Rising Stars, Open or Elite) according to earlier placings and weekly training hours. Duo, trio and group entries are by age division only. In eTalenter that gives 56 groups for this one item.

A round is a single performance. The entry is announced, the music is played and the adjudicator watches the routine from start to finish, then scores it out of 100 over five lines: Technique 30, Performance 25, Musicality 20, Choreography 15 and Overall Impression 10. The total decides a recognition level on the certificate, and first, second and third place medals are given depending on the number of entries, with Highly Commended ribbons below them.

Time limits are printed by entry type: three minutes for a solo and for a duo or trio, four minutes for a small group and five minutes for a large group. A dancer may enter two routines in the same section. Organisers run it because lyrical is one of the most popular studio genres and gives a calm, emotional contrast to the jazz and tap sections in the same programme.

Where Straight Lyrical is run

In eTalenter data Straight Lyrical appears on one template, an Australian one-day amateur dance challenge held in Sydney. Lyrical is a standard genre in studio competitions and eisteddfod-style programmes in Australia, the United Kingdom, North America and other countries with a strong studio dance scene; this page asserts Australian use only from the data.

• Australia
• United Kingdom
• United States
• Canada

Key facts

• Entry types: solo, duo or trio, small group and large group; boys and girls compete together with no language requirement.
• Divisions: eight cumulative age divisions (4 and under to 17 and over); solos are further split into Novice, Rising Stars, Open and Elite sections.
• Time limit: 3 minutes for solo and duo or trio, 4 minutes for a small group, 5 minutes for a large group.
• Scored out of 100: Technique 30, Performance 25, Musicality 20, Choreography 15, Overall Impression 10.
• Different from Acro Lyrical, which is its own genre on the same template.
• Idea starters, not rules: a routine to a song about friendship, a piece built on a single image such as rain or a lantern, a duo about two friends parting, a group piece moving from one tight cluster to open lines.

On eTalenter, Straight Lyrical 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, Straight Lyrical is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to 3–5 minutes where a limit is set.

What judges look at in Straight Lyrical

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

• Technique (30): extensions held with control, turns finishing on balance, soft falls and recoveries, pointed feet and a steady core through slow movement where there is nowhere to hide.
• Performance (25): a connected face and focus that match the music, with emotion that is believable and sustained from the entrance to the last pose.
• Musicality (20): movement that follows the phrasing and lyrics, with suspension and release timed to the music rather than counted mechanically.
• Choreography (15): a clear arc through the piece, varied levels and travel, and steps that suit the age of the dancer instead of copying an older dancer’s routine.
• Overall Impression (10): a costume and presentation that support the mood, and a finished, rehearsed whole.
• In pairs and groups, shared breath and unison on slow movement is judged closely: a late arm or a wobbling line is easy to see when the pace is gentle.

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

How to prepare for Straight Lyrical

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

• Choose music with a clear emotional shape and a cut that fits inside the time limit with a few seconds to spare.
• Build balance and control with slow barre-style work: sustained extensions, slow turns and held positions, because lyrical shows weakness in control immediately.
• Listen to the lyrics with the teacher and decide what each phrase means before setting steps, so the face and the movement tell the same story.
• Practise falls, floor work and recoveries until they are quiet and smooth, with no visible effort to get up.
• Keep all acrobatic tricks out of this entry and save them for Acro Lyrical, so the routine matches the genre it is entered in.
• For duos and groups, rehearse breathing together and film the routine from the front to check spacing and lines.
• After a lower recognition level, read the adjudicator’s comments with the teacher and choose one technique point and one performance point to fix before the next event.

Frequently asked questions

Is Straight Lyrical 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 Straight Lyrical and Acro Lyrical?

They are separate genres on the same template. Straight Lyrical relies on dance technique and emotion only, while Acro Lyrical includes acrobatic skills in the routine.

How long can a Straight Lyrical routine be?

Three minutes for a solo or a duo or trio, four minutes for a small group and five minutes for a large group, as printed in the syllabus.

Can a group enter Straight Lyrical?

Yes. It is offered as a solo, a duo or trio, a small group and a large group, each by age division.

Does Straight Lyrical get first, second and third place?

Yes. Medals go to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place depending on the number of entries, and every performance also receives a recognition level from its score out of 100.

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