Different festival formats - just curious

[tropicmama]

DD has participated in a couple of dance festivals in the last year and has about 3 solos in her "repertoire" of dances (ballet, modern, tap).  So in the festivals she's been in, she gets to perform on stage on her own and all the dancers in that section go on stage one at a time to perform.  Adjudication happens after every section (if it's quite a big one) or after every few sections (if sections are small).  A couple of her friends live up north (Lancashire/Yorkshire way) and participate more actively in festivals and in more sections (everything from Latin to cheer, hip-hop in addition to ballet/modern/tap).  However, I noticed that in DD's friends' festivals, the children in each section appear to all dance together in a group (although obviously against each other) all together on stage or the middle of a hall, doing the same or similar steps.  Some then get called back for semi-finals and finals.  I just wondered why the festivals are quite different in format.  Is this due to the organisers?  The genre?  The region (we live in the South of England)?  I've just always wondered about this and was too shy to ask DD's friends mums.  I also wondered if DCs who get to perform with others in their section at the same time, as opposed to going on stage one at a time, find it less daunting as they are actually dancing as a group (even if they are technically against each other).  Another little thing I noticed - photography and taking videos when DCs are performing are strictly prohibited in the festivals my DD has been in, and yet in the festivals her friends have been, this doesn't seem to be the case as I've always been shown videos and photos of them dancing taken during the actual performances.

[dancingboy65]

We are in East Yorkshire and do 2 festival's a year, they are pretty big and last a week. Also they are All Englnad qualifiers. They have always had solo sections, they are always on stage by themselves also defiantly no photos or video we wouldn't dare!!!

[BlueLou]

Photos and videos taken by parents whilst children are performing are a definite no at the comps we go to in West/North Yorkshire, although some people still manage to do it! Sometimes people take photos in the foyer (or on the stage during breaks), and sometimes there is an official photographer/dvd person who takes photos/dvds that you can buy. Ballet, tap, modern, character, song & dance, Greek, acro, National, lyrical, and vocal sections all feature at our comps and are all performed individually. Typically at the comps we go to there are 15 to 30 dancers in a section and adjudication is at the end of every section. The only time I’ve ever seen children all perform together is for impromptu/improv sections, when they all have to dance to a piece of previously unheard music. I believe ballroom, Latin, and freestyle competitions do involve collective performances though. There are also duet, trio and group sections at our comps, which obviously do involve performing together on stage.

[sarahw]

Yes we are in Lancashire and all dance individually. Only official photography is allowed.

[Pups_mum]

I don't think it's a regional thing. We are in the north and all the festivals my DD ever did were the standard format. The only kind of competitions I've ever heard of where everyone dances together and then the group size is whittled down is freestyle/disco. I can't see how this type of format is supposed to work really, unless it's impromptu. How can you prepare a dance if you don't know what the music is going to be? That said, I have seen dancers who do basically the same routine in impromptu at every festival, regardless of the music! 

[Picturesinthefirelight]

It sounds like freestyle to me too. 

[shygirlsmum]

I have seen street dance comps in a similar format.

 

[Bluebird22]

The street dance comps that students from our dance school participate in have a few different categories: teams which take their own music and each team performs individually; solos and duos which most students pre choreograph a routine based on a set amount of BPM they all perform together and get whittled down. 

 

The IDTA freestyle awards take a similar approach everyone takes part in a class then there are solos where everyone dances together. The modern awards everyone takes part in a class then solos are performed individually with a time limit of 30seconds I think (well it was when I went a few moons back!) 

[Mrs Brown]

South West here and limited experience but our festivals are All England format I gather. Enter into classes where all are individual or duet or trio/quartet or group in different styles. All get a number and compete individually in order, then all in class go on for results.