Contact 01273 419 900 enquiries@hovedancecentre.co.uk
Prestwich House, North Street, Portslade, East Sussex BN41 1DH
Hove Dance Centre
Computer Wallpapers!
(click the one you like and
save it on your computer as a background wallpaper)
Ballroom and Latin Competitions Explained
Once you have taken your first ISTD exam you are eligible to enter medallist competitions if you wish. These are held frequently at various locations around the UK. We attend competitions as far away as Cambridge and Bournemouth, plus of course the grand finals in Blackpool at the end of November.
For the first timer we recommend the Bournemouth and local Hove competitions... Both of these have a great atmosphere plus the added benefit of being children only or adult only. All other competitions have children first followed by adults, which can mean that adults don’t start to dance until 5pm in extreme cases. This makes for a very late arrival back home and is not for the faint hearted.
At all of the competitions, the competitors are divided into age and grade groups. For the children there are under 6, under 8, 8-11 years (juvenile) and 12-15 years (junior) age groups. For adults there are 16-34 years (under 35), 35-49 years (over 35) and 50-plus age groups (over 50). You then dance in your grade (for example Social Dance Test etc). If there are 6 or more 6 male competitors in any event they get their own competition. There are solo events where you dance with a teacher or senior pupil and couples events where you dance with another pupil. You don’t have to do couples, but you must enter solos to take part in couples.
At your first competition, we don’t expect any more from you than enjoyment... seeing people with full make up and hair at 8.30 in the morning takes a bit of getting used to!
Tickets for these competitions usually cost around £10 per person, for competitors and spectators alike. We encourage car sharing where possible to get there but that is for you to arrange yourselves.
Under 12s have a strict dress code (please ask), but anyone aged 12 or over can wear pretty much what they like.
Men should wear black trousers with a white shirt and tie for ballroom, however for latin dances you can wear an open shirt. This can be any colour, but black with a coloured tie looks very smart. Men can get ballroom and latin shoes - ballroom have a lower heel and latin have a cuban heel and are more flexible. As two pairs of shoes can be expensive, we recommend ballroom shoes first.
Ladies can wear ball gowns for ballroom, long with full skirts. However a long skirt and a floaty top can also suffice. For latin, a shorter dress is usually worn. Before spending a lot we recommend looking in high street stores for ‘party dresses’ as you can get something sequinned or fringed at a fraction of the cost of a ‘proper’ latin dress. Again. ladies have both ballroom and latin shoes. Latin shoes are usually strappy with open toes and ballroom shoes have closed-in toes. We would always advise getting flesh coloured satin shoes as they go with everything and are the in thing!
As for hair and make up (for the ladies), basically go way over the top. Think false eyelashes and hair pieces and you start to get the idea. Some people even have spray tans before a competition.
Hopefully this gives you the full picture. It all sounds very daunting, but please be assured it is fun. We pride ourselves in being very supportive of one another at competitions and being loud with our cheers! If you don’t have fun, it’s not worth doing it! If you have any further questions, please ask - and good luck in your competing!
