Competition Rules

We have noticed our newcomer sections are very big AND TO MAKE SURE everyone has a fair shot when it comes to our competition we have added in a new section

Our NEWCOMER category is for new teams and/or solo dancers who are competing for the first time or have NEVER made it through rounds.

Our NOVICE category is for teams/and or solo dancers who have competed before and who have placed top 6 in the newcomer category

Our INTERMEDIATE category is for teams and/or solo dancers who have placed 1st in our novice category or placed top 3 twice in our novice category with 6 or more in the category.

Our ADVANCED category is for teams and/or solo dancers that have placed 1st in our intermediate category or placed top 3 twice in our Intermediate category.

Our aim is to ease the situation of huge newcomer sections and also make it fairer for the students.

BATTLES (Regionals)

House & Hip Hop

13 &Under / 14 & Over

There is no more than 20 dancers per age category per battle competing. Each dancer will freestyle individually for the judge for 25 seconds. The judge will pick their top 8 for the 1v1 battle. Each dancer gets 30 seconds to battle it out against another dancer. In the final each dancer gets 2 rounds of 30 seconds each.

British & European Championships

We will add in 2v2 all-styles battles.

TEAMS

Teams must be between 5-25 dancers

Only 1 person to film the team at a time

AGE & LEVEL CATEGORIES AND TIME ALLOWANCE

6 & Under (Open Only) / 8 & Under / 10 & Under / 12 & Under / 14 &  Under / 16 & Under / 17 & Over.

Parent Team = Novice rules

• Newcomers - No more than 2:00 minutes allowed.
• Novice – No more than 2:00 minutes allowed.
• Intermediate – No more than 2:30 minutes allowed.
• Advanced – No more than 3:00 minutes allowed.

Dancers CAN NOT compete in more that one team.

Soar Events Ltd have the right to condense their age and level category to ensure the smooth running of each event.

Teachers are able to dance in any team category (NEWCOMER/NOVICE/INTERMEDIATE/ADVANCED) BUT are only permitted to dance in advanced for solo and duo categories

If your Team comes 1st place once in the Newcomers category OR place top 6 where there is a minimum of 6 teams in your category then you must move up to the NOVICE category.

If your Team comes 1st place once in the Novice category where there is a minimum of 3 teams in your category OR if you place top 3 twice with a minimum of 6 teams in your category then you must move up to INTERMEDIATE.

If your Team comes 1st place once in the Intermediate category where there is a minimum of 3 teams in your category OR if you place top 3 with a minimum of 6 teams in your category then you must move up to ADVANCED.

If you don’t place top 5 in Advanced category within the year you can email us at bookings@soardance.com  to ask to be reconsidered to move back to Intermediate.

Penalties will be used for the following:

• Swearing or any bad language in music

• Music over allotted time (5 second grace)

• Inappropriate movement & costumes

• There must be no more than 25% above the age category in the team.

JUDGES CRITERIA

CHOREOGRAPHY

With the rise in Youtube & Vimeo over the past couple of years and non street styles (foundational) choreography being popular; this section is where you will be judged on non foundation street dance styles.

You will be judged on:

• Cleanliness of dancers in the team

• The precision of movement

• The synchronicity of dancers

• The ability of the team as a whole

(Please note that if your whole set is made up of foundational styles then you will still be judged on the guidelines set above.)

VARIETY/EXECUTION

This is where you will be judged on how well you execute the foundation styles in your team performance.

Age and level will be taken into account.

We expect more diversity in the steps and encourage you to look into the styles and the different vocabulary available.

We suggest showing at least 3 foundation styles throughout your routine. 2 points will be awarded for each style shown, gaining a maximum of 6 bonus points.

A further 4 points can be gained for the quality of those styles.

We need to see at least 4x8 for the style to count.

Focus should be on QUALITY not QUANTITY

There won’t be any deductions for more than 3 styles shown.

Styles we recognise are:

HIP HOP | HOUSE | POPPING | LOCKING | KRUMP | WAACKING | VOGUING | BREAKING | DANCEHALL | LITE FEET | AFRO

MOVEMENT

This is where you are judged on your use of the floor and how the team moves around it.

How clean your formations and shapes are.

Smooth transitions from position to position.

Use of original movement.

MUSICALITY/CREATIVITY

This is where you will be judged on your interpretation of the music.

Originality of moves.

Original music choices.

Complexity of music phrasing.

Creativity of movement to music/lyrics.

PERFORMANCE

This is where you will be judged on your performance.

The energy the team bring to the floor.

The enthusiasm that every member brings.

The confidence in the performance.

How engaged with the judges and audience the team are.

Judges will grade per section using the following scale:

• 0-2 = Below Average

• 3-4 = Average

• 5-6 = Good

• 7-8 = Very Good

• 9-10 = Excellent

Please note that Judges may use increments of 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1 to scores in accordance with the above scale.

SOLOS

Dancers must compete in their age & level category set out by SDC rules. We advise and encourage all dancers to freestyle and NOT come with a set routine to compete in this category. Music will be played at random by our DJ.

Teachers MUST compete in Advanced.

Numbers will be collected from your teacher. If you are competing without your school, you can collect your number from the reception desk upon entry.

AGE & LEVEL CATEGORIES

6 & Under (Open Only) / 8 & Under / 10 & Under / 12 & Under / 14 & Under / 16 & Under / 17 & Over.

• Newcomers – This category is open for all dancers who have not competed at SDC and HAVE NOT made it through rounds before.

• Novice – This category is for solo dancers who have competed at SDC before and placed top 6 with 6 or more dancers in their category twice or placed 1st in an event.

• Intermediate – This category is for dancers who have placed 1st in our novice category or placed top 3 twice in our novice category with 6 or more in the category. Once you have reached intermediate level you can never go back to newcomer.

• Advanced – This category is open for all dancers who have not competed at SDC but wish to start at this level. If you HAVE been placed in the TOP 3 Intermediate category more than 2 twice at SDC then this category is for you. A teacher competing must compete in this category.

Once you have started a level category you can not go down a category unless you have gone up an age category.

For British and Europeans we will add in a parent solo section.

The level and age will be open.

DUOS

Dancers must compete in the age & level category of the eldest and more experienced dancer of the 2 dancers competing.

For example: dancer 1 competes in 12 & under advanced and dancer 2 competes in 16 & under newcomers. The duo competes in 16 & under advanced.

Teachers MUST compete in Advanced.

Dancers will use the number that was allocated to them for their duo. 

AGE & LEVEL CATEGORIES

6 & Under (Open Only) / 8 & Under / 10 & Under / 12 & Under / 14 &  Under / 16 &  Under / 17 & Over.

Newcomers / Intermediate / Advanced

PARENT & CHILD

For British and Europeans we will add in a parent child section

The level and age will be open.

The child must be under the age of 16

The music will be selected by the dj on the day.

QUADS/TRIOS

There are 5 age levels 8 & under / 10 & under / 12 & under / 14 & under / 15 & over

The level is open

Dancers can have 1 person over or under the age category they dance in if they are in a quad.

Music will be selected by SOAR and given out 3 months prior to the event.

MEGACREW RULES 2020

CONCEPT/ STORY

We would like to see a concept or story. We encourage you to be original and creative with your performance and to engage with the audience.

Your choreography should be original and match your concept or story.

This does not have to have a theme but the judges will take that in mind.

EXECUTION OF STREET DANCE TECHNIQUE AND CHOREOGRAPHY

Here is where your execution, difficulty and authenticity of choreography will be judged.

We are a street dance competition and recognise 11 Street styles (found in team rules) but encourage you to use all dance styles as long as it provides a purpose to the piece or has some form of relationship with the street dance culture.

In Megacrews we want to give you more creative freedom, this way you wont be marked solely on your level of technique & choreography but also the choices you make.

OVERALL CREATIVITY

We want to see a PERFORMANCE like no other, make sure you use transitions, formations, music, levels and choreography to Engage with the audience. Musicality will be judged upon use of accents, rhythms and tempos should be used.

Props are welcomed as long as they are safe and don’t impede the dance floor for future acts, they should be used to add to the performance and add value.

Outfits should be age appropriate and not distract from the performance, dancers should be dressed appropriately.

Outfits should compliment performance and match the overall performance.

Originality is key.

PERFORMANCE

This is where your performance is judged. Your stage presence and engagement with the audience, showmanship and stage projection will be focused on.

We are looking for a slick routine. Great synchronisation is required to gain full marks. We are looking for confidence and commitment from all the dancers to ensure the performance as a whole is clean, tight and visually pleasing.

JUDGES OPINION

As you are aware dance is very subjective and everyone has there own opinion, this section is where our judges will give scores based on their own person views.

Also how engaged they felt and how much entertainment it brought to the dance floor.

18-40 dancers are permitted in a Megacrew

• Megacrew routines can be up to a maximum of 4 minutes long.

• There is no maximum of song choices; Megacrews may dance to as many or as few songs as they like in one routine.

• 75% of the Megacrew must dance for at least 2 minutes of the routine.

There is no age or division categories for the Megacrew competition; all Megacrew will dance against each other regardless of age or ability.

Tricks are permitted.

Judges will grade per section using the following scale:

• 0-2 = Below Average

• 3-4 = Average

• 5-6 = Good

• 7-8 = Very Good

• 9-10 = Excellent

Please note that Judges may use increments of 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1 to scores in accordance with the above scale.

HOW TO QUALIFY FOR SOAR BRITISH & EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS

Compete at our regional SDC events.

The below qualify to compete at our Soar British / European Weekender.

• Teams / Solos / Duos – Place Top 5 in any age & level category

• Battles – Place Top 2 in any style and age category.

PAYMENT & REFUND POLICY FOR SDC COMPETITIONS

Once registered, payment will be required to secure your place at SDC.

Deadline to confirm your place, registration and payment is required no later than 14 days before the SDC event you are attending. This includes if you are just competing in Solos, Duos, Battles.

If you need to amend your registration & booking numbers of dancers & spectators please email  bookings@soardance.com  14 days prior to the event you have booked onto. Any amendments to your booking after the deadline date, your tickets will still need to be paid for in full. However you are more than welcome to sell your tickets to someone else.

However, if you need to cancel your registration or any dancer/spectator tickets you have pre-ordered and paid for in full, a part refund will be refunded within the first 7 days of purchase. Refunds are issued within 7 days after each SDC event.