Feis Maitiu, Corcaigh – Drama — An Irish Drama Festival Section With Dramatic Solo and Dramatic Duo Classes Across Seven Age Bands

Speech & Drama · Ireland

Speech & Drama festival in Cork, Ireland (Centenary Festival 2027), with real Dramatic Solo and Dramatic Duo classes across a 7-tier age ladder from 8 Years & Under to 18 Years & Over.

A ready-made drama festival section: a Dramatic Solo class for individuals and a Dramatic Duo class for pairs, laid out across seven age bands from 8 and under to 18 and over, with time limits that lengthen as performers grow.

This template models the English speech and drama section of a long-running Irish city festival. It is deliberately compact: two classes, the Dramatic Solo, where one performer presents a piece of drama alone, and the Dramatic Duo, where two performers present a piece together. The value lies in the age ladder, because the template turns the festival’s cumulative ‘and under’ class names into clear, separate age bands.

There are seven age groups: 8 and under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, 17, and 18 and over. Both classes are offered in every band. The printed programme names its solo and duo classes with different boundaries, so the template reconciles them onto one shared ladder. An organiser then works with a single age system, and a teacher entering a pupil in both classes finds them on the same row.

Time limits follow the printed programme. Dramatic Solo runs to 4 minutes for ages 8 and under and 9-10, 5 minutes for 11-12, 7 minutes for 13-14, and 10 minutes for every older band. Dramatic Duo runs to 5, 6, 8, 10 and then 12 minutes for the five oldest bands. Solos are individual entries and duos are team entries of two. Both classes are open to any gender and run in English, and the maximum duration is installed on each assignment so a timekeeper has a clear stop point.

The source prints no mark-sheet, so the template carries a nominal ten-point scale and no invented criteria. Entry fees are installed as zero for each organiser to set. The festival follows the national marking scheme of a federation of festivals, but the scheme itself is not reproduced here, so panels should agree their own criteria before the first class. A festival wanting extra classes, such as a mime or a group scene, can add them alongside these two.

Where this event comes from

The structure comes from the festival’s own published 2027 syllabus, which lists the dramatic solo classes, the dramatic duo classes, their age ranges, time limits and entry fees.

Where this event is run

Age-laddered solo and duo drama classes are a standard feature of festival-style speech and drama competitions in Ireland, the United Kingdom and other countries that follow the same festival tradition, where drama teachers and schools enter pupils year after year. The model suits any school, studio or community festival that wants a simple solo-and-pair drama section with fair, age-matched competition.

• Ireland

Key facts

• 2 items: Dramatic Solo (individual) and Dramatic Duo (team of two)
• 7 age groups: 8 and under, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-16, 17, and 18 and over
• Solo limits: 4 minutes for the two youngest bands, rising to 7 for 13-14 and 10 for older bands; duo limits run from 5 to 12 minutes
• Open to both genders, English language; entry fees installed as zero for the organiser to set
• The source’s solo and duo classes use different age boundaries, so the template maps both onto one shared ladder
• No criteria printed in the source, so none are installed; nominal ten-point scale

Age groups

7

Competition items

2

Competitions

14

Grade bands

0

Rank awards

0

Age groups

Every candidate is placed into one of these groups by age, and competitions are run per group.

8 Years & Under

5From

–

8To

Candidates aged 5 to 8 compete in this group

9-10 Years

9From

–

10To

Candidates aged 9 to 10 compete in this group

11-12 Years

11From

–

12To

Candidates aged 11 to 12 compete in this group

13-14 Years

13From

–

14To

Candidates aged 13 to 14 compete in this group

15-16 Years

15From

–

16To

Candidates aged 15 to 16 compete in this group

17 Years

17From

–

17To

Candidates aged 17 to 17 compete in this group

18 Years & Over

18From

–

120To

Candidates aged 18 to 120 compete in this group

Competition items

The events themselves — each with the category it belongs to and how judges score it.

Dramatic Solo

ActionMarks

Dramatic Duo

ActionMarks

Frequently asked questions

Can I change this template after installing it?

Yes — installing it creates a fully configured, live event, not a locked package. Every age group, competition item, rule and scoring setting can be edited afterwards to match exactly what your event actually needs.

Do I need technical knowledge to set this up?

No. Installing a template does the setup work for you; you only need to review the details (dates, unit or house names) and open registration.

Want the fuller picture first? See our guide to drama and speech judging guide.