An open-genre group routine in which a troupe performs one dance of its own choice as a team, marked out of 100 on three Australian dance templates.
Any style troupe is the open class of group dance. Instead of being tied to ballet, jazz, tap or hip hop, the troupe chooses its own style, or blends several, and performs one routine together as a team. It suits groups whose number does not fit a single genre, such as a fusion piece, a story told through mixed movement, a cultural or character dance, or a routine that moves from one style to another. Because the panel cannot rely on a genre checklist, it judges how well the troupe does what it set out to do.
In eTalenter data Any Style Troupe appears on three Australian dance templates. On all three it is a team item open to both genders, with a five-minute limit and a mark out of 100. One template, an eisteddfod dance programme, runs it in seven team age bands from 6 and under to 16 and under plus an open-age band. Another, a multi-genre national series, runs it in eight troupe bands from 6 and under to 18 and under plus an open-age band. The third, a dance challenge, runs it in four 5-and-under classes named Mini, Small, Large and Novice.
Only the national series prints a mark sheet for it: Technique 40, Stage Presence 25, Execution of Performance 20, Choreography 10 and Overall Appearance 5. The eisteddfod and challenge templates install the item as a team entry marked out of 100 without a printed sheet, so this page does not claim one for them. None of the templates says how many dancers a troupe needs or what counts as a different style, so those points are for the organiser to state in the entry rules.
For organisers it is a useful catch-all class: it gives groups that fall between the named genres somewhere to compete without creating a new item for each. Register each troupe as a team, choose its age band, record every adjudicator's marks and let the ranking give the placings. Matters the software does not enforce, such as minimum troupe size, prop and set rules, music licensing and whether a troupe may enter the same routine in a named-genre class as well, belong in your entry conditions.
Where Any Style Troupe is run
In eTalenter data Any Style Troupe appears on three Australian templates: an eisteddfod dance programme, a multi-genre national dance series and a dance challenge for young troupes. Open-genre group classes are common at dance competitions and school showcases elsewhere, but this page describes only what those templates carry.
- Australia
Key facts
- Team item: a troupe performing one routine of its own chosen style or mix of styles; the software enforces no dancer count.
- Time limit is five minutes on all three templates that carry it.
- Marked out of 100; the series with a printed sheet uses Technique 40, Stage Presence 25, Execution 20, Choreography 10, Appearance 5.
- Age bands differ by template: 6 and under to 16 and under plus open age on the eisteddfod programme, 6 and under to 18 and under plus open age on the national series, and four 5-and-under classes (Mini, Small, Large, Novice) on the challenge.
- Gender is open: troupes may be mixed.
- Idea, not a rule: pick one clear organising idea, such as a story, a theme or a contrast of styles, so the mix looks planned rather than a medley of unrelated steps.
On eTalenter, Any Style Troupe is filed under Dance and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 3 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Any Style Troupe is most often entered as an Team competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to around 5 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Any Style Troupe
What a Any Style Troupe panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Technique (40): sound technique in whichever styles the routine uses, with every dancer clean on the steps and the group matched in line, posture and finish.
- Stage presence (25): commitment and projection that suit the chosen style, and a clear sense of character, mood or story from the whole troupe.
- Execution (20): unison and timing, tidy formation changes, and transitions between styles that are controlled rather than rushed or ragged.
- Choreography (10): a routine that has a purpose, uses the space and levels well, and makes its mix of styles feel deliberate.
- Overall appearance (5): costumes and presentation that support the idea and let the dancers move safely.
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Any Style Troupe under Scoring Setup, or start from the full group dance judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Any Style Troupe
How entrants and their teachers usually get Any Style Troupe right on the day:
- Choose the style or styles first and be able to say in one sentence what the routine is about; panels reward a clear idea over a crowded one.
- If you blend genres, rehearse each section in its own technique before joining them, and spend extra time on the changeovers where marks are usually lost.
- Build formations to suit your actual number of dancers and the stage size, and practise on a space of similar dimensions.
- Check the music for the full five minutes' limit with a margin, and prepare a clean start and finish so the timing is safe.
- Match dancers to parts honestly: give each a role they can perform cleanly, so the weakest dancer is not the one the panel watches.
- Film the run from the judges' seat and check unison, spacing and whether the idea reads without an explanation.
- Confirm with the organiser which age band applies to a mixed-age troupe and how age is taken before you register.
Frequently asked questions
Is Any Style Troupe judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter's templates it's most often run as an Team entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
What does 'any style' mean in a troupe class?
The troupe may choose its own style or combine several, rather than entering a named genre class. The templates do not define the styles allowed, so ask the organiser if you are unsure whether a routine qualifies.
How long is an any style troupe routine?
Five minutes on all three templates that carry it. Check the organiser's own rules for the event you are entering.
How is an any style troupe marked?
Out of 100. Where a sheet is printed it is Technique 40, Stage Presence 25, Execution of Performance 20, Choreography 10 and Overall Appearance 5.
Is it different from a named-genre troupe such as a jazz or hip hop troupe?
Yes in scope, not in format: both are team items marked out of 100, but a named-genre troupe is expected to show that genre, while an any style troupe chooses its own style.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full group dance judging criteria guide, or browse every dance competition item.
Try Any Style Troupe in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Any Style Troupe, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
