Showbiz Talent Dance Competition — Studio Dance Competition: 16 Styles, Nine Age Divisions, Three Levels and 300-Point Scoring

Talent Test · Community Talent Show

Showbiz Talent (United States) dance competition rules, 2023 season: 16 dance styles for solos, duet/trios, small and large groups, lines and productions by age division and Sapphire, Ruby or Diamond level, scored by three judges out of 300 with Elite, Platinum, High Gold and Gold awards.

A ready-made studio dance competition: 16 performance styles, five act sizes from solo to line plus Production, age divisions from Mini to Adult, Sapphire, Ruby and Diamond levels, and three-judge scoring out of 300 with Gold to Elite award bands.

This template sets up a regional-and-national style dance competition of the kind that tours the United States, where studios and independent dancers bring solos, duets, trios, groups, lines and production numbers to be scored by a panel of three judges and rewarded by score band as well as by placing. It was built from one circuit’s 2023 season rules, read in full. Entries are made by act size: a solo is one dancer, a duet or trio is two or three, a small group is four to nine, a large group is ten to nineteen, a line is twenty or more, and a production is a themed piece for twenty-five or more. Ages are counted as at 1 January of the competition year, and a group’s age is the average of its dancers (9.0 to 9.9 counts as 9), with a bump rule that stops an entry dropping more than one division below its oldest dancer.

Every act is placed by three things at once: its size, the age division and a competitive level. Solos run in eight divisions – Mini (5 and under), Petite (6 to 7), Pre Junior (8 to 9), Junior (10 to 11), Pre Teen (12), Teen (13 to 14), Pre Senior (15 to 16) and Senior (17 to 19) – and every other act size uses five wider divisions: Mini, Petite (6 to 8), Junior (9 to 11), Teen (12 to 14) and Senior (15 to 19). Each division is offered at three levels: Sapphire for beginner and intermediate dancers training under six hours a week, Ruby for intermediate dancers under ten hours and Diamond for advanced dancers over ten. A dancer keeps one level for the season, and a routine’s level follows a point ratio in which a Diamond dancer counts three, a Ruby two and a Sapphire one. Any routine with a dancer aged twenty or more is an Adult entry, placed in Diamond only. The template carries 105 groups in all: 25 for solos and 16 for each of the five team act types.

The 16 items are the printed competing styles: Acro/Gymnastics, Ballet, Clogging, Contemporary, Folkloric, Hip Hop, Improv, Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Musical Theater, Open, Pointe, Pom Pom, Song and Dance and Tap. The rules print no restriction on which styles may run in which division or level, so every style is installed in every group and the organiser removes whatever the event will not run. Biz Kids, a non-competitive category with critiques instead of placings, is left out, and Adult is installed as the age groups rather than as a style. Time limits follow the act size: 2 minutes 45 for solos and for duets or trios, 3 minutes for small groups, 4 minutes for large groups, 5 minutes for lines and 7 minutes for productions. Solos are individual entries and every other act is a team entry; every item is open to both genders, in any language, with entry fees installed at zero because the structure is separate from the registration price list.

Scoring is the distinctive part. Each of the three judges marks Technique (20 to 45 points), Execution (20 to 40) and Showmanship (5 to 15), so a perfect act earns 300 in total. The printed award bands are Gold from 255, High Gold from 270, Platinum from 285 and, for the Diamond level only, Elite from 294. The template installs them as grades at the same shares of the total, 85, 90, 95 and 98 per cent, with no bonus points because none are printed. Because the rules give ranges for each part rather than fixed marks that add to 100, no per-criterion judging criteria are installed and the organiser adds a score sheet for the panel. Fees and refunds, late-entry and schedule-change charges, the music upload deadline, check-in and conduct deductions, props and safety rules, the limit of three solos per dancer, the Top 10 finalists and the special, choreography and title awards are registration rules for the coordinator, not structure the platform holds. Rules change between seasons, so check the current edition before reusing groups or timings.

Where this event comes from

Built from one United States dance circuit’s 2023 season printed rules and regulations, read in full against the document itself; an older edition of the same rules was compared and differs only in level wording, refund wording and the free-entry rules to the national finals. Fees, dates, venues and the points behind the special awards are not installed.

Where this event is run

Tiered, score-banded studio dance competitions with age divisions, competitive levels and award bands are the standard format of the touring dance circuits in the United States, where schools enter many acts across a weekend and are rewarded by score band as well as by placing; similar layouts are used for regional contests in Canada, Australia and elsewhere. This template follows one circuit’s rules and suits any dance school, festival or touring competition that wants solos, duets, trios, groups, lines and productions in one structure, a three-judge total, and Gold-to-Elite awards without hand-building 105 age and level groups.

• United States

Key facts

• 16 items: Acro/Gymnastics, Ballet, Clogging, Contemporary, Folkloric, Hip Hop, Improv, Jazz, Lyrical, Modern, Musical Theater, Open, Pointe, Pom Pom, Song and Dance and Tap
• 105 groups: 25 solo groups (eight divisions at three levels, plus Adult in Diamond) and 16 for each of Duet/Trio, Small Group, Large Group, Line and Production (five divisions at three levels, plus Adult in Diamond)
• Solos are individual entries; every other act size is a team entry, and every item is open to both genders in any language
• Time limits by act size: 2:45 for solos and duets or trios, 3:00 small groups, 4:00 large groups, 5:00 lines, 7:00 productions
• Three judges score Technique, Execution and Showmanship for a 300-point total; award bands run from Gold at 255 up to Elite at 294 and above, Diamond level only
• No per-criterion marks, entry fees or minimum age are printed, so none are installed; the lowest age band starts at 3 as a placeholder

Age groups

105

Competition items

16

Competitions

1680

Grade bands

42

Rank awards

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Age groups

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

Solo Mini Sapphire

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Solo Mini Ruby

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Solo Mini Diamond

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Solo Petite Sapphire

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Solo Petite Ruby

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Solo Petite Diamond

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Solo Pre Junior Sapphire

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Solo Pre Junior Ruby

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Solo Pre Junior Diamond

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Solo Junior Sapphire

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Solo Junior Ruby

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Solo Junior Diamond

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Solo Pre Teen Sapphire

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Solo Pre Teen Ruby

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Solo Pre Teen Diamond

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Solo Teen Sapphire

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Solo Teen Ruby

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Solo Teen Diamond

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Solo Pre Senior Sapphire

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Solo Pre Senior Ruby

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Solo Pre Senior Diamond

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Solo Senior Sapphire

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Solo Senior Ruby

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Solo Senior Diamond

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Solo Adult Diamond

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Duet/Trio Mini Sapphire

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Duet/Trio Mini Ruby

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Duet/Trio Mini Diamond

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Duet/Trio Petite Sapphire

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Duet/Trio Petite Diamond

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Duet/Trio Junior Sapphire

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Duet/Trio Junior Ruby

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Duet/Trio Junior Diamond

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Duet/Trio Teen Sapphire

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Duet/Trio Teen Ruby

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Duet/Trio Teen Diamond

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Duet/Trio Senior Sapphire

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Duet/Trio Senior Ruby

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Duet/Trio Senior Diamond

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Duet/Trio Adult Diamond

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Small Group Mini Sapphire

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Small Group Mini Ruby

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Small Group Mini Diamond

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Small Group Petite Sapphire

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Small Group Petite Ruby

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Small Group Petite Diamond

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Small Group Junior Sapphire

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Small Group Junior Ruby

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Small Group Junior Diamond

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Small Group Teen Sapphire

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Small Group Teen Ruby

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Small Group Teen Diamond

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Small Group Senior Sapphire

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Small Group Senior Ruby

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Small Group Senior Diamond

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Small Group Adult Diamond

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Large Group Mini Sapphire

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Large Group Mini Ruby

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Large Group Mini Diamond

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Large Group Petite Sapphire

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Large Group Petite Ruby

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Large Group Petite Diamond

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Large Group Junior Sapphire

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Large Group Junior Ruby

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Large Group Junior Diamond

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Large Group Teen Sapphire

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Large Group Teen Ruby

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Large Group Teen Diamond

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Large Group Senior Sapphire

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Large Group Senior Ruby

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Large Group Senior Diamond

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Large Group Adult Diamond

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Line Mini Sapphire

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Line Mini Ruby

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Line Mini Diamond

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Line Petite Sapphire

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Line Petite Ruby

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Line Petite Diamond

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Line Junior Sapphire

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Line Junior Ruby

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Line Junior Diamond

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Line Teen Sapphire

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Line Teen Ruby

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Line Teen Diamond

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Line Senior Sapphire

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Line Senior Ruby

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Line Senior Diamond

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Line Adult Diamond

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Production Mini Sapphire

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Production Mini Ruby

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Production Mini Diamond

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Production Petite Sapphire

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Production Petite Ruby

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Production Petite Diamond

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Production Junior Sapphire

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Production Junior Ruby

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Production Junior Diamond

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Production Teen Sapphire

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Production Teen Ruby

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Production Teen Diamond

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Production Senior Sapphire

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Production Senior Ruby

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Production Senior Diamond

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Production Adult Diamond

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Competition items

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

Acro/Gymnastics

DanceMarks

Ballet

DanceMarks

Clogging

DanceMarks

Contemporary

DanceMarks

Folkloric

DanceMarks

Hip Hop

DanceMarks

Improv

DanceMarks

Jazz

DanceMarks

Lyrical

DanceMarks

Modern

DanceMarks

Musical Theater

DanceMarks

Open

DanceMarks

Pointe

DanceMarks

Pom Pom

DanceMarks

Song and Dance

DanceMarks

Tap

DanceMarks