2007 - 2008 Dance Guide

Regular Season Guide
Tournament Season Guide
Forms

For the 2007-2008 school year, Dance has been approved as a varsity activity for the Winter Season. Dance is an approved activity of the National Federation of State High School Associations, and as such, falls under the NHS Spirit Rules and Guidelines. During the Winter Season a number of competitions will be offered at various VPA member schools. In order to complete in these regular season competitions, Dance teams must meet eligibility requirements listed below (#1). Items #2 through #8 relate directly to the VPA Championship event at the end of the regular season and may not be in effect during the regular season.

1) Eligibility

• All schools entering a Dance team in the year-end championship must be from a VPA member school.

• All teams entering the championship must be recognized by their school as an approved activity.

• All students participating on a Dance team must meet VPA and school eligibility requirements.

• All teams entering the year-end championship must have completed in a minimum of two Vermont competitions. Schools must compete once in each category to be performed at state championship.

2) Divisions and Team Size (VPA Championship)

• For the 2007-2008 school year, there shall be a Varsity division at the year-end championship. Schools must notify the VPA by January 19, 2008 as to which division and category (s) they plan on being in. The categories will be Jazz, Hip Hop, and Pom. A team may enter themselves in 2 categories for the championship. In order to qualify for the team championship, the team must be in two events.

• The maximum team size is 20 performers. A school may enter more than 20 performers on the registration form, however a maximum of 20 performers may be on the floor at any given time. Teams will be allowed to substitute performers at the end of the first round.

• The minimum size of a team shall be 4.

• Coed teams are allowed in the Championship.

• Schools may enter only one team in the Varsity Division.

3) Performance Rules (VPA Championship)

• There shall be a preliminary and final round in each division, if warranted.

• All teams shall perform in the preliminary round. The top 3 teams shall perform in the final round.

• The same routine, music, and costume must be used in both rounds. Failure to do so will result in the disqualification of the team.

• Each team will perform a routine with a maximum time limit of three minutes and a minimum time limit of two minutes. Teams will be penalized if they go over or under the time limit.

• Teams may only use recorded music. The VPA will provide a CD player. However, teams must furnish their own music and someone to operate the music player. The music must be on a CD, must be appropriate, and contain no vulgar or obscene language. Questions about the appropriateness of music may be directed to member(s) of the Dance Committee. If music is determined to be inappropriate during competition, the team will be penalized. Teams should also bring a back-up copy of their CD. Your music person should bring the back-up copy with them to the table. Please remember that if your music is from a burned CD you may want to bring your own player, as not all players will play burned CDs. The VPA is not responsible for music malfunctions. Unfortunately, time may not allow each team to test its’ music on the VPA player. Therefore, if the team prefers to use its’ own player, this is fine.

• Routine interruption: if your routine is interrupted due to failure of competition equipment or facilities, you will be allowed to perform again, going last in your division. If the interruption is due to failure of your equipment or supplies (scratched or burned CDs, poor quality, etc.), you will not be allowed to perform again.

• Each team will be given 5 minutes to practice their routine on the competition floor before the event begins. A schedule of practice times will be made available before the championship.

• All uniforms and accessories must comply with the rules listed in the NFHS Spirit Guide. Please note that no bare midriff is allowed. Coaches are responsible for ensuring that their teams meet these rules. Violations of the uniform and accessories rules will result in a team being penalized.

• Props are permissible in the routine. A “prop” is anything that is not permanently attached or positioned on a uniform and is used to add to the overall effect of the routine. Props may not be used as bases (Spirit Guide Rule #3, Section 5). Questions about the appropriateness of a prop shall be referred to the Dance Committee by January 5, 2008.

• Teams that are performing a stunt(s) in their routine must abide by the following restrictions:

a) NO tumbling, partner stunts or pyramid building will be allowed. This includes standing or stepping on backs, and cartwheels. Forward rolls, backward rolls, handstands, back bends and shoulder rolls are permitted as long as they are not linked together.
b) Hip Hop stalls are allowed.
c) Knee drops are prohibited unless most of the weight is first borne on the hands and/or foot/feet to absorb impact.
d) Any type of position with both feet back (sitting, landing, or lying) is prohibited with the exception of a “Z” sit.
e) Partner stunts are NOT allowed. Partner Stunts are any position where the weight of a person is completely supported by another person off of the ground. Every person must have at least one foot or hand in contact with the floor.

4) Protests

• If a participating coach believes that a team has violated a competition rule, the coach must notify the Rules Violation Committee specifying the team involved, the rule in question and how the rule was violated. Protests must be filed prior to the final round of competition (or immediately after a performance if in the final round). The Rules Violations Committee will meet to discuss the protest and issue a decision. The Committee shall notify the coach of the offending team that protest has been filed. Decisions of the Rules Violation Committee are final.

5) Scoring
• The exhibition will be following UDA (www.varsity.com) scoring guidelines. A copy of these guidelines is available on the UDA website. A copy will also be sent to each school indicating that they will be participating.

6) Judges
• Judges for the 2007-2008 Dance Championship are experienced people with a though knowledge, and background in the various areas of dance. The judges will use the following criteria to select the top teams: appearance, technique, group execution, choreography, and overall effect. Three judges will be used and the scores of all judges will be combined to determine the final score for each performance. Up to two technical judges will also be used to rule on penalty violations. One technical judge will check with each team for uniform violations prior to the team entering the performance area.

7) Entry Fees

• The costs will be $125 per team entering the Championship. Registration forms need to be sent by January 18, 2008 to:

Barb Miceli
Burr & Burton Academy
P.O. Box 498
Manchester, VT 05254

8) Championship Location and Date

• Saturday, February 16, 2008
• Sites/Times: Middlebury High School 1:00 p.m.