Entry Guidelines & Rules

*** ATTENTION: COVID related policies and terms are still under development and will be listed here upon completion ***

REMINDERS:

• Ages of all dancers will be as of December 31st of the previous year.
• All dancers must be placed in the correct classification (novice, pre-comp, etc) and age division.
• Names, ages and birth dates of all competitors must be included on the entry form. If requested, proof of age must be provided at the competition.
• To qualify for the Ultimate Dream to Dance award, studios must have at least 10 entries, 5 of which must be groups.
• In order to determine average ages of duets, trios etc. simply add up the ages of all the competitors in each category and divide by the number of dancers involved.
• When adults are included in Production numbers, it is not necessary to include their ages to calculate average age but adults must be included when determining the number of dancers involved.
• Should a dancer be required to dance out of group as well as outside of their scheduled adjudication period, they will not qualify for group placement (i.e. 1st place novice jazz duet junior age 11), but they will still qualify for overall awards.
• In the unlikely case that we are unable to run an event, or portion of an event, due to to venue inoperability, we will do our best to adjust the remaining schedule to accomodate. However, no refunds will be issued for entries not run.

CLASSIFICATIONS:

• To determine classifications, "training" includes ALL in-studio lessons and rehearsals. If your training schedule varies at different times of the season, "training" hours must be averaged out over the studio's entire training season.
• Our competitive level objective is to ensure dancers have the opportunity to compete against other dancers with similar experience and training.
• Your studio is responsible for entering routines in the correct category and division
• Please make sure all entries are checked carefully before submitting entry forms to our office
• All questions regarding placement will be answered promptly by sending e-mail or calling our office. We are here to help!
• Solos are considered one solo only. Soloists are dancers who perform more than one solo in a competition.

AGE DIVISIONS:

Pee Wee	6 years and under
Mini	7 to 9 years
Junior	10 to 12 years
Intermediate	13 to 15 years
Senior	16 to 19 years
Pro	*See below*
Adult	20 years and older

NOVICE:

Please read carefully! All age categories are eligible for Novice.

• Novice Solos: Have never competed in a Solo
• Novice Duets/Trios: All individuals must be 100% Novice - have never competed in a Solo, Duet or Trio
• Novice Groups: Have never competed before (i.e. first year competing). A new dance form (e.g. Jazz) performed by experienced dancers is not considered Novice. All Novice Groups must be at least 75% Novice.

PRE-COMPETITIVE:

Pre-Competitive is defined as someone who has competed before but who trains 6 hours or less per week and has 8 or less entries at an event. Note: Duets and Trios must be 50% Pre-Competitive and Groups must be 75%. Productions must be at this level or they must compete in Competitive Level.

Competitive dancers who may have reduced their number of hours of training cannot compete in this category. They must remain in the Competitive level.

COMPETITIVE:

This category is defined as dancers who have previously competed and who currently train more than 6 hours per week and/or have more than 8 entries. Students must be 19 years or under.

PROFESSIONAL:

A dancer who earns more than 50% of the annual income from performing or teaching dance. This category is not eligible for overalls.

PERFORMANCE:

Dancers are adjudicated, but do not compete against others. Performance dancers are not eligible for overall awards.

Note:

Note: Adults are dancers 20yrs+ and are not eligible for overall awards.

PERFORMANCE SIZES AND TIME LIMITS:

Category	Size	Maximum Time(minutes)
Solo	1 dancer/one solo	3:00
Soloist	1 dancer/more than one solo	3:00
Duet/Trio	2-3 dancers	3:00
Small Group	4-9 dancers	4:00
Large Group	10-15 dancers	4:00
Line	16-24 dancers	4:00
Large Line	25+ dancers	4:00
Production	16+ dancers	12:00

For performances not fitting these guidelines, please contact Dream to Dance to determine applicable category.

MUSIC:

• Music must be recorded at tempo and cut prior to the competition. Dream to Dance is not responsible for ending music on cue.
• Remember to bring a back-up copy of your music as we are not responsible for submissions that do not work.
• In the event that lyrics or choreography are deemed inappropriate, a penalty will be levied at the discretion of the judges and the competition director. This penalty will be in the form of a 1 to 2-point deduction, and/or a full disqualification, depending upon the severity of the infraction.
• iPad or iPhone audio connection is available. We ask that your iPad be fully charged and that you have a studio representative available to cue the music.
• Any material /device not picked up at the end of the competition will be left at the venue or discarded unless previous arrangements are made with our office.

Props:

• Props may be used. They must be free standing. These props should be essential to the performance and must be carried on stage by the performer or studio representative.
• No props that could pose a danger are allowed, such as fire, fog machines, swords, knives or helium balloons etc. No form of liquid gel, aerosol, or powder. There is a maximum set up time of 2 minutes.
• Productions are an exception and specific time requirements must be arranged with the Dream to Dance Competition director prior to the schedule being sent out.

Please note:

• Time limits are set for scheduling purposes. If a dance exceeds the above times, notify Dream to Dance prior to the competition.
• When using props, please be sure to let us know on your entry forms so that we can allow an extra minute for set up. There is no time allotted for props to be set-up for Solos, Duets or Trios.
• Please indicate on your entry form the set-up time required for Production numbers.

Mobile Device Use
Mobile Devices shall not be used to take photos or videos in any change room, restroom or other private area of the competition.
Furthermore, we request, out of respect for the dancers - unless you are placing a 911 call, a doctor dealing with a life threatening situation, a mother going into a labour (or someone who's better half is going into labour) or ordering one of our staff a coffee from Starbucks - that no calls be placed or taken in the theatre, or back stage. In other areas of the event, please use good judgement when using a mobile device - don't be "that person".

Photography and Video
Dream to Dance provides professional photography and video - including online access for dancers and families through Dancebug. There is no need for anyone to be recording or taking pictures of a dancer on stage. Attendees caught taking pictures or recording video will be asked to delete said content and may be asked to leave the premises.

Recording of video on the premises is not allowed without the permission of Dream to Dance staff or directors. Personal photography is allowed in public areas of the competition only. You must have consent to photograph any other attendee, spectator or team member. No photography or cameras of any kind are allowed to be used in any change room, rest room, or other private area of the competition.

Dream to Dance allows designated staff to take images of attendees and spectators for social media and other promotional purposes, including on stage during performance and awards ceremonies, back stage, warm up room, lobby, or anything within the event vicinity. By your continued participation in our events, you irrevocably consent to and grant the exclusive, worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free and otherwise unlimited right to use, copy, modify, distribute, publicly display and perform, publish, transmit, remove, retain, and re-purpose the images for any purpose in any media or form of communication, without additional consent and without compensation, including but not limited to Dream to Dance Competition's commercial and promotional use on its corporate or employee social media sites.

Non-Solicitation
At Dream to Dance we aim to provide a safe environment for dancers to perform and for studio directors, choreographers and teachers to showcase their talents. It is unacceptable for any adjudicator, studio director, teacher, parent or representative to approach a dancer, choreographer or teacher from another studio, whether in person, or through social media, with the intent to recruit, solicit or otherwise convince them to leave their current studio.

Should it come to the attention of Dream to Dance directors that such activities are occurring during the course of the event, it will be left to the discretion of the Competition Directors to address, up to and including removal from the premises or disqualification of the dancer or studio from the event, without argument, appeal or refund.