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A Dance Competition like no other

The ONLY competition that offers FREE Pictures & Videos to ALL entries!!!

  • Jackpot Ca$h Awards…Over $10,000 per city!!!

  • HD Backdrop screens with moving content synced to your music.

  • Premium QSC Sound & Premiere Stage Lighting.

2025 Categories and Fees:

CATEGORIES NUMBER OF DANCERSEARLY RATEREGULAR RATE
Solo1 Dancer$160$180
Duo/Trio2-3 Dancers$80$90
Group4-9 Dancers$60$70
Line10-19 Dancers$60$70
Production20+ Dancers$60$70
* COMPETITION PRICES ARE THE SAME FOR REGIONALS & FINALS

Age Divisions:

DIVISIONAVERAGE AGE
Lil SparkAges 4-6
MiniAges 7-9
JuniorAges 10-12
TeenAges 13-15
SeniorAges 16-18
ADV Pro (Not eligible for Cash Awards)19+

Competition Questions? e: Mlankston@nrgdanceproject.com ph:309-219-6726, Onsite Competition Director katie@nrgdanceproject.com

  • To reach the average age, all ages are added together and divided by the number of dancers. *Decimals are dropped. We will not round up at .5
  • ALL AGES ARE AS OF JANUARY 1, of the current year. Birth certificates must be supplied upon request. Photocopies are acceptable.
  • YOU MUST REGISTER FOR NRG CONVENTION TO BE ELIGIBLE TO COMPETE – NO EXCEPTIONS!
  • Please COMPLETE your registration 30 DAYS prior to the event for the EARLY RATE. ALL entries received after the cut off will be invoiced at the regular rate: NO EXCEPTIONS!
  • Only Registration fully completed online will be accepted.
  • Note: No changes will be accepted two-weeks prior to event.

Entry Limits:

Studios will be allowed unlimited entries!!! Please be advised once competition time is filled we will sell out & a waitlist will be created.

*New 2025 -Only one solo per dancer with initial registration, if at 30 days time allows, additional solos will be accepted.

All entries must be Registered & completed online by the registration cut-off date. Changes in entries following the 30 day mark will have the regular rate applied. No changes will be made to entries following the two week deadline. NO EXCEPTIONS

Regional competition will be limited to time availability. With Possible (Mostly Solo) competition during the day on Thursday possibly in sold out cities & Friday in all others. We will do our best to avoid group competition during school hours but this is not always possible. If you have concerns please contact us BEFORE entering.

Please get your entries in early!!!

If quota is reached before cut-off date, subsequent competition entries will not be accepted.

Disciplines:

Ballet : Routines must consist of ballet or pointe technique.

Jazz : A routine that demonstrates jazz technique, utilizing up-tempo music.

Contemporary: A mix of jazz styles with heavy emphasis on modern & ballet technique.

Lyrical: A combination of jazz and ballet techniques to ballads, incorporating emotional and storytelling elements.

Tap : A routine comprised of tap technique.

Open : A routine that demonstrates any dance style or combination of dance styles

Hip Hop : A routine utilizing hip-hop or street-type moves

Musical Theatre : A routine utilizing Broadway or theatre dance styles.

Time Limits:

CATEGORY MAXIMUM LENGTH

Solo ……………………..two minutes and forty-five seconds max (2:45)

Duo/Trio…………….…two minutes and forty-five seconds max (2:45)

Group………………………………………………..three minutes max (3:00)

Line……………………………………………….……four minutes max (4:00)

Production……………………………………………five minutes max (5:00)

Please email for all additional time requests & extended Production exceptions.

Rules & Regulations:

COMPETITION ELIGIBILITY

    • All dancers competing must be registered for the NRG workshop in the city where they are competing.
    • To be eligible for Overall CASH Awards dancers MUST be registered with a studio (a studio is considered 10 or more students).
  • Registering with fewer then 10 dancers? All registrations with less than ten dancers registered for the NRG workshop will receive adjudication (Platinum,Gold, etc.) and Category Placement ( 1st place, Contemporary solo etc.) *All overall placements and CASH Awards are reserved for studio registrations with 10 or more dancers.
  • Competing dancers may enter as many categories as they wish.
  • Soloists with more than one number will only be allowed one placement in Top Solo Cash awards.
  • No teacher may perform with students.
  • Professional dancers may compete but are not eligible for cash awards, no matter what age – TBD by NRG Directors.
  • Dancers may compete in more than one city, again NOTE: To be eligible for CASH Overall Awards dancers MUST be registered with a studio (a studio is considered 10 or more students)
  • National Prodigies are only allowed to compete their solo at their home city where their studio is attending.

PROPS

  • General props are permitted; however, there are limitations as to how large the props can be. Please note that ceiling heights can vary in each venue. Please check with NRG if you have concerns with the size of a prop. ***NRG has very limited backstage storage space for props.
  • No dangerous props (i.e., swords, fire, sand etc.) or use of live animals.
  • Dances will be disqualified if props take longer than 2 min to set up.

GENERAL

  • Routines containing more than three (3) gymnastic/acro passes must be entered in the OPEN category.
  • ALL numbers deemed “wrong category” will be moved to the appropriate category at Judges request.
  • Routines must be appropriate for family viewing. Point deductions or disqualification could result if judges deem a number inappropriate.
  • There will be no changing of Competition order and we will not stop for costume changes once the schedule is set. Please make sure that dancers are not in back-to-back numbers.
  • In cities with a large amount of entries, we may hold Competition early on Friday. You are agreeing to this possibility when registering.
  • CHANGES in competition entries two weeks prior to convention will result in late fee’s.
  • Failure to upload music 2 weeks prior to comp will result in removal from competition!
  • Admission to NRG’s “The Show” competition is absolutely free! All registered attendees, as well as family and friends, are welcome to watch at no cost. Come and support your dancers!
  • VIP Seating will be available for teachers at competition.
  • All competing dancers must be registered for the full weekend of convention in order to participate in competition. Convention wristbands must be worn while competing.
  • Choreographers and all attendees automatically give permission to NRG to use all photos and videos for advertising and publicity.
  • Stage Dimensions are 40ft across X 32ft deep X 2ft high. There are 2 sets of stairs & wings on each side when venue spec’s allow.
  • All entries are final and non-refundable. No exceptions.

    MANDATORY Music Requirements:

    • ALL ENTRIES must Upload competition music to the NRG server. This is MANDATORY! NO EXCEPTIONS. If you need assistance please email melissa@nrgdanceproject.com. We will NOT accept any music onsite. Any Music Changes onsite will result in late fees.

    IMPORTANT! Dances without music uploaded 2 weeks prior to event will be removed from the competition and replaced by those on the waiting list.

    ***AGAIN ~ Dances without uploaded music 2 WEEKS prior to event will be removed from Competition! NO Exceptions! NO Refunds!

    If you have questions or need help with this process please email: Melissa@nrgdanceproject.com

    • You may bring music backed up on iPod/Computer/Hard Drive. This is not mandatory however you are responsible for back-ups. Failure to have back-up if needed may result in disqualification. NO REFUNDS will be given.

    • Please NO music on CDs, tapes, records or 8tracks (iPad/phone will be used as a back-up ONLY). Any back-up needed due to technical difficulties will be submitted to our sound booth.

    ***Music is not saved from city to city all music must be uploaded to the system every time.

Sold out Competition:

  • Competition and convention could sell out prior to the event’s cut off date! The majority of our events will sell out competition and it is recommended to complete the registration process as soon as possible. NRG may close competition at any point, even before the cut off date if capacity is reached.

Thursday & Friday Competition:

  • Thursday & Friday competition start times may vary. It is possible for competition to start as early as 7 am. We will start with solo competition. If groups are scheduled to compete on Thursday or Friday, they will not be scheduled before 3 pm without prior verification. If any routine that is scheduled on Thursday or Friday is unable to perform due to scheduling issues and/or school, NRG is happy to try to accomodate another time.
  • There will be a tentative schedule and a final schedule sent to studio directors only. You will be able to request routines to be moved before the final schedule is sent. Once the final is sent out there will be no changes permitted.

Awards System:

Three (3) judges will adjudicate all entries. ONE Judges critique video will be provided with all Judges comments on the same Video. Overall scores will be based on the AVERAGE of three scores listed below:

  • PERFORMANCE……………………………………………………………..0-100
  • TECHNIQUE ……………………………………………….………………….0-100
  • CHOREOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………0-100

*** TOTAL SCORE AVERAGED OUT OF 300 ***

Awards

  • Platinum 288-300
  • High Gold 279-287.9
  • Gold 270-278.9
  • High Silver 150-269.9

Lil Spark & Mini Awards will take place earlier in the evening, separate from general awards.

  • During category placement we award a top three or a top five depending on the amount of routines entered in the category.
  • Cash awards will be given to the overall highest scoring routine in each age division/category. Second and Third Place Overall highest scoring dances may be awarded depending on the amount of entries. Cash amounts will vary depending on the number of entries.
  • Studio must register 10+ dancers to be eligible for cash awards

Critiques

    • All critiques will be uploaded to your registration site by the Wednesday following your event, at 9 am EST.
  • All three judges are on one critique allowing for the most useful feedback.

“The NRG Awards”

“The Judges Favorites, NRG Awards” (formerly HighVoltage & Choreography) will be handed out in Mini/Junior and Tn/Sr Age Divisions in each city. Regional Winners will receive $100 CASH. ALL finalists are invited to compete for $5000 at our National Finals events. Regular registration for Nationals is required and routines will be Judged in their regular categories as well as for this Specialty Award.

*There must be a minimum of 3 entries in each Age category for $5000 National Finals Award to be given.

FREE Pictures & Videos

  • Pix and videos of competition may be accessed through the NRG Website. Dancers can access individual media packages by using the dancers first two letter of first name and full last name followed by birthdate. Example: jasmith01052005
  • Photography and Videoing during competition are strictly prohibited. Advanced technology of video on cell phones, cameras, etc has forced us to prohibit all camera use during competition. This includes ALL still photography, with or without flash. This is to protect the rights of the choreographer as well as your children’s safety, and to make it possible for NRG to offer a professional photography and video service. Any violations can result in routine and/or studio being disqualified.

For Questions please email NRG Photographer : Pix@nrgdanceproject.com