Ballroom Spirit Foundation was founded to support the youth today for their future tomorrow in their ballroom dancing journey. Laying the stage for the youth to showcase their ballroom spirit and inspire the next generation in achieving dancing excellence, we are proud to present the first “Ballroom Spirit Under 21 Tour ” in collaboration with DBDC- a legendary and celebrated dancesport competition.
Here are the rules of engagement:
Rules for the Ballroom Spirit Under 21 Tour
We have selected 6 competitions as qualifiers for this Under 21 Latin and they are:
Each competition will run an Under 21 Latin event. The couple that wins this event will be taken to DBDC where they will compete in the tour finale. If the winners are already qualified, or do not wish to participate in the finale, the next couple will be selected. $500 will be allocated to each qualifying couple to offset some travel expenses for the Finale at The DBDC.
The Finale at the DBDC
Besides running the final qualifier event in the afternoon to select the final couple to compete in the finale, in the evening the six couples will have to dance a full final group event with all five dances. The couples will be awarded points for each dance based on where they place in the final.
Points earned per dance in the group competition will be:
A first place will earn you 6 points
A second place will earn you 5 points
A third place will earn you 4 points
A fourth place will earn you 3 points
A fifth place will earn you 2 points
A sixth place will earn you 1 point
Later in the evening the six couples will also be asked to perform a “showdance.”
In the “Showdance” portion of the competition, each couple will perform a solo routine of 1:30 minutes or less, any couple that dances over this time will get a deduction of a point per second after 1:30 minutes. (eg. if you dance 2 minutes, 30 points will be deducted from your final tally). There are no restrictions on material. Props can only be used if they are attached to the dancer or costume. Nothing can be placed on the floor as “scenery” including chairs. No extra people can assist in the routine during or at the beginning or end. The six couples will dance in order of their placements in the group event with the sixth place, couple dancing first. 9 judges will be selected at random to judge the solo routine.
The selected judges will award 4 different scores for each couple.
1. Theme & Artistry 25 points.
Is the theme recognizable with clarity through body actions, acting, projection and interpretation costuming and music or without music
2. Effortless completion of complex choreography. 25 points
Was the couple able to complete choreographic complexity without being overtly physical.
3. Technical performance. 25 points
Entrances and exits, connections etc. Points should be deducted for any obvious errors – missed lifts, missed connections, falls, etc.
4. Entertainment value. 25 points
Was the performance entertaining for you personally?
In order to keep the point system as balanced and as fair as is humanly possible in the Showdance portion of the competition, the highest judge’s score and the lowest score for each couple will be eliminated. Then the Showdance scores will be averaged and added to the group competition points towards the result.
Audience-voting feature:
The audience will vote for their favorite couple following all the solo presentations and this vote will also count toward the amount of points the couples receive. The audience vote is tabulated in percentage up to 100% meaning each couple will receive a percentage score and this will be converted to points. If a couple receives 30% of the vote they will automatically receive half this total as points, 15 extra points towards their final tally in the solo competition. People can vote by phone or via the internet. Voting will end 5 minutes after the voting has been activated. And all scores will be added and tabulated and a winner and placements will be announced and rewarded.
In the event of a technical problem with the internet connection that effects the livestream and/or polling system and is beyond the control of the Tour or DBDC, the audience vote will not be used. The results will then be determined by the judges’ scores only, from both the group competition and solo performances.
The couple with the most Total points win the Tour.
In the unlikely event of a tie for any position in the overall tour, a dance-off will be used. The two couples will be asked to draw for a dance then a minimum of 3 judges will make their decision.
Qualification
Both partners in the couple must be under 21 years of age at the time of the Finale (July 30st, 2022)
Final Purse of the tour:
5000.00
2000.00
1000.00
500.00
500.00
500.00
Check us out at ballroomspirit.org and Dance Beat, DBDC website for the latest news. Spread the words and encourage the young dancers to participate in this outstanding opportunity. We would love to hear your thoughts and comments, please email info@ballroomspirit.org or follow us on Facebook.