Variety Troupe Competition: What It Is, Where It’s Run and How It’s Judged

A group dance in which a troupe performs one routine that mixes styles or acts, marked out of 100 and run in 24 classes on one Australian dance challenge template.

A variety troupe is a group dance built on contrast. Rather than holding to one genre, the troupe presents a single routine that moves between different styles, moods or characters, so that the performance feels like a short show in itself. Think of a routine that opens with a theatrical scene, drops into a rhythmic section and closes with a high-energy finish, all held together by one idea. It sits beside the named-genre troupe classes such as jazz or tap, and next to the open any style troupe class, as the place for groups whose strength is range and showmanship.

In eTalenter data Variety Troupe appears on one template, an Australian dance challenge, where it is a team item open to both genders with a five-minute limit and a mark out of 100. It is offered in 24 classes. Eighteen of them pair a class size (Mini, Small or Large) with an age band: 6 and under, 8 and under, 10 and under, 12 and under, 14 and under and 15 and over. Six more are Novice classes in the same six age bands, which gives less experienced troupes a level of their own.

The template prints no mark sheet for this item, so this page does not claim one. The adjudicator’s marks are recorded out of 100 and the ranking produces the placings. The template also does not say how many dancers make a troupe or where the line falls between Mini, Small and Large, so those points belong in the organiser’s entry rules.

For organisers it is a crowd-pleasing class that fills the programme with variety. Register each troupe as a team, place it in its age band and size class (or the Novice class), record every adjudicator’s marks and let the results rank the entries. Rules the software does not enforce, such as minimum numbers, props, set pieces, music licensing and whether a troupe may enter the same routine in another class, are best stated clearly in your entry conditions.

Where Variety Troupe is run

In eTalenter data Variety Troupe appears on a single template, an Australian dance challenge that runs 24 troupe classes across several genres. Variety or showcase group classes also exist at dance competitions and school concerts elsewhere, but this page describes only what that template carries.

• Australia

Key facts

• Team item: a troupe performing one routine that blends styles or acts; the software enforces no dancer count.
• Time limit is five minutes in every class.
• Marked out of 100, with no printed sheet on this template.
• 24 classes: Mini, Small and Large in six age bands (6 and under to 15 and over), plus six Novice classes.
• Gender is open: troupes may be mixed.
• Idea, not a rule: build the routine around a simple storyline or theme, such as a journey or a day-to-night change, so each switch of style has a reason.

On eTalenter, Variety Troupe 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, Variety Troupe is most often entered as an Team competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 5 minutes where a limit is set.

What judges look at in Variety Troupe

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

• Technique: clean, controlled work in every style the routine uses, with the whole troupe at the same standard rather than a few strong dancers carrying it.
• Unison and timing: steps, arms and heads together, with entrances and exits on the beat.
• Variety that works: contrasts that look chosen, with each section distinct and the switches between them smooth rather than abrupt.
• Performance and energy: commitment, facial expression and projection that suit each section, held for the full five minutes.
• Choreography and staging: good use of the stage, interesting formations and levels, and a clear beginning, build and finish.
• Presentation: costumes and props that help the idea and allow safe movement; quick changes should not cost time or tidiness.

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

How to prepare for Variety Troupe

How entrants and their teachers usually get Variety Troupe right on the day:

• Decide the single idea that links the sections before choosing music; variety without a thread can look like a medley.
• Cut the music to fit well inside five minutes and rehearse with a stopwatch so the finish is not rushed.
• Rehearse each style section on its own until it is clean, then spend separate sessions on the transitions, where most marks are lost.
• Plan costume or prop changes so they are quick and silent, and practise them in full dress.
• Place your strongest performers at the points of change and give every dancer a part they can do cleanly.
• Film a run from the judges’ seat and check unison, spacing and whether each section is clear without explanation.
• Confirm with the organiser which size class and age band your troupe belongs in, and whether Novice applies, before you register.

Frequently asked questions

Is Variety Troupe judged individually or as a team?

Across eTalenter’s templates it’s most often run as an Team entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.

What is a variety troupe in dance?

A group that performs one routine mixing different styles or acts, so the piece shows range. The template does not define the styles allowed, so ask the organiser if you are unsure whether a routine qualifies.

How long is a variety troupe routine?

Five minutes in every class on the template that carries it. Check the organiser’s own rules for the event you are entering.

How is a variety troupe marked?

Out of 100 by the adjudicators. This template prints no breakdown for the item, so the organiser sets what the panel weighs.

What is the difference between Mini, Small, Large and Novice?

They are separate classes within each age band. The template names them but does not define the size cut-offs or the Novice entry rule, so those come from the organiser.

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