Kentucky State Fair Talent Classic — A State Fair Talent Contest for Ages 7 and Up: Vocal, Instrumental, Dance, Acrobatic/Gymnastic and Variety, Solo or Group

Talent Test · Community Talent Show

Kentucky State Fair Talent Classic 2026: Vocal, Instrumental, Dance, Acrobatic/Gymnastic and Variety acts, as solos or groups, in three age divisions (7-12, 13-21 and 22 and up) with a 4-minute limit and a 1-point-per-second overrun penalty, built from the fair’s own brochure.

A ready-made talent contest with five act categories, each open as a solo or as a group, in three age divisions from 7-12 to adults, every act held to a firm four-minute limit and marked by a panel of judges.

This template models a state-fair talent contest in Kentucky, United States, in which contestants perform live on a shared stage with cash prizes printed as more than $5,000 in total. It is built from the contest’s own 2026 brochure, so the structure follows what that document printed: the categories, the three age divisions, the four-minute limit and the general entry rules. Dates, venues and entry rules change every year, so confirm the current brochure before you reuse anything.

Five categories are modelled: Vocal, Instrumental, Dance, Acrobatic/Gymnastic and Variety. Each one is a single competition, and each can be entered either as a solo or by a group. Because a soloist and a team should never be ranked against each other, every age division is split into two groups, one for individual entries and one for team entries, which gives six groups in all. Vocal and Instrumental sit under Music, Dance and Acrobatic/Gymnastic under Dance, and Variety under Others.

Contestants must be at least seven years old on 1 August 2026, and the brochure prints three divisions: 7 to 12, 13 to 21, and 22 and over. Adults have no printed upper age, so the template ends the oldest band at 99. A coordinator should still check each entrant’s age on the date the rules name rather than on the day of the event. Boys and girls compete together in every category and no language is set.

Every act, in every category and division, has the same limit of four minutes. Timing starts with the first word, note or movement and ends with the last, bows and encores included. The brochure prints no judging criteria, no marks per category and no point values for placings, so the template installs no judging criteria, grades or ranks. Each competition keeps a default maximum of 100 marks, and eTalenter ranks the acts within each group from the mark the judges give.

Where this event is run

This template suits any open talent contest that welcomes singers, instrumentalists, dancers, tumblers and novelty acts in one programme and wants three age bands from children to adults, with a solo section and a group section in each. A county or state fair, a community festival, a youth showcase or a charity talent night can use it as it stands. Rules that the platform has no field for, such as the one-point-per-second overrun penalty, the cap of one entry per category and two categories per contestant, the rule that a group cannot add or replace members after its preliminary round, and the sanctioned preliminary contests that feed a final, are kept as registration-page rules rather than enforced by the software, so they sit with the entry instructions your coordinator publishes.

• United States

Key facts

• Five categories, each a single competition: Vocal, Instrumental, Dance, Acrobatic/Gymnastic and Variety
• Three age divisions: 7-12, 13-21 and 22 and over, with a minimum age of 7 on 1 August 2026
• Six groups: a Solo group (individual entries) and a Group group (team entries) in each division
• A four-minute limit on every act, timed from the first word, note or movement to the last, bows included
• No judging criteria, grades or ranks installed, because the brochure prints no marks; each competition keeps a default 100 marks
• Boys and girls compete together, no language set, no entry fees installed, and 30 solo and group assignments in all

Age groups

6

Competition items

5

Competitions

30

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.

Ages 7-12 Solo

7From

–

12To

Candidates aged 7 to 12 compete in this group

Ages 13-21 Solo

13From

–

21To

Candidates aged 13 to 21 compete in this group

Ages 22+ Solo

22From

–

99To

Candidates aged 22 to 99 compete in this group

Ages 7-12 Group

7From

–

12To

Candidates aged 7 to 12 compete in this group

Ages 13-21 Group

13From

–

21To

Candidates aged 13 to 21 compete in this group

Ages 22+ Group

22From

–

99To

Candidates aged 22 to 99 compete in this group

Competition items

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

Vocal

MusicMarks

Instrumental

MusicMarks

Dance

DanceMarks

Acrobatic/Gymnastic

DanceMarks

Variety

OthersMarks

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 judge scoring and tabulation guide.