A solo or duo jazz dance in which tricks such as cartwheels, walkovers and headstands are not allowed, so the routine is judged on jazz technique alone, as run in a children’s and teens’ solos-and-duos dance competition in Victoria, Australia.
Jazz No Acro is the pure-technique side of a pair of jazz sections. A dancer performs a short routine to music in a jazz style – sharp, rhythmic and energetic, with strong isolations, kicks, leaps, turns and changes of direction – and the routine must stay free of acrobatic tricks. The edition behind this page names the banned moves directly: cartwheels, walkovers and headstands do not belong in the section.
In that edition the item is one of twelve dance styles in a solos-and-duos competition. It runs in a section for dancers aged 6 and under, then in five age groups (8 and under, 10 and under, 12 and under, 14 and under and 15 and above), each split into a Novice and an Open level, and in an all-ages duo section for two dancers. Age is counted on 1 January. Novice is for dancers who have not placed first or second in any competition in the last three years; Open is for dancers who have placed first or second in the style recently, and anyone who took part in a national final in the last two years must enter Open.
A solo routine may run for up to three minutes and a duo for up to four, and the time limit is enforced with a penalty for running over. The syllabus bans tricks rather than listing allowed steps, so high kicks, split leaps and turns are the normal vocabulary of the section, while anything that puts the hands on the floor to flip or turns the body upside down is the kind of move the section excludes.
Organisers run a no-acro section next to the acro one because the two groups of dancers are not training the same thing. A pupil who spends the week on turns, leaps and musicality should not be scored against a dancer whose routine hangs on a back walkover. Keeping them apart lets the panel compare like with like and lets teachers place each pupil where their strongest skills are seen.
Where Jazz No Acro is run
In eTalenter’s data the exact title Jazz No Acro is carried by one template: a solos-and-duos dance competition run in Victoria, Australia, which lists it beside Jazz Acro, Classical, Neo Classical, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Contemporary, Song and Dance, Tap, Demi Character, Own Choreography and Any Style. Dance festivals and eisteddfods elsewhere run jazz sections without acrobatics under plain names such as Jazz or Jazz Solo; this page describes the item only as that edition runs it and does not claim wider use of the exact title.
- Australia
Key facts
- Solo or duo: individual dancers compete in the age sections and the all-ages duo section is for two dancers. Boys and girls compete together.
- Tricks such as cartwheels, walkovers and headstands are not allowed. The sister section, Jazz Acro, allows them, so a routine belongs in one section or the other, not both.
- Sections: 6 and under (all styles together); 8, 10, 12, 14 and under and 15 and above, each with Novice and Open levels; and an all-ages duo section.
- Time limits as printed: up to 3 minutes for a solo and up to 4 minutes for a duo, with a penalty if exceeded.
- The syllabus prints no marking scale, criteria or points, so the template carries a score out of 100 that the adjudicator fills in; the adjudicator’s decision is final and a prize may be withheld.
- The knee-pad and two-shoe rule for dancers aged 11 and over applies to jazz routines with floor work, fly rolls or knee drops; a no-acro routine that avoids those moves is not affected.
On eTalenter, Jazz No Acro is filed under Dance and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 1 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Jazz No Acro is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to 3–4 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Jazz No Acro
What a Jazz No Acro panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Jazz technique carries the whole routine: with no tricks to lean on, the panel looks harder at kicks, leaps, turns, isolations and the placement of every limb. Turned-out legs, pointed feet and a controlled landing from each leap are where marks are won.
- Compliance with the section: a cartwheel, walkover or headstand that sneaks into the choreography breaks the rule of the section and can cost the dancer heavily or move the entry out of it. A routine that stays clearly inside the line is safer than one that flirts with it.
- Musicality and rhythm: jazz is built on accents, syncopation and hits, so steps should land on the beat and the dynamics should follow the music. A dancer who runs ahead of the track loses the sharpness the style depends on.
- Variety and difficulty without acrobatics: strong dancers replace tricks with demanding turn sequences, extended leaps, direction changes and level changes that stay on the feet or the floor without inversion. Variety of vocabulary matters more than repeating one impressive step.
- Performance and showmanship: energy, eye focus and a face that matches the music. Jazz is a performance style, and a clean but flat routine scores below one that looks confident and enjoyable.
- Stage use, costume and finish: clear starts and ends, good use of the floor area, a costume that allows movement, and a routine that ends inside the time limit in a held final pose.
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Jazz No Acro under Scoring Setup, or start from the full group dance judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Jazz No Acro
How entrants and their teachers usually get Jazz No Acro right on the day:
- Choose the section honestly: if a dancer’s best moments are tricks, enter Jazz Acro; if their best moments are turns, leaps and musicality, enter Jazz No Acro. A strong routine in the right section beats a clever one in the wrong section.
- Audit the choreography against the rule line by line: ask a teacher who did not choreograph it to watch for any inversion, cartwheel, walkover or headstand, including a quick hand-down move that looks harmless. Change anything doubtful before the entry is made.
- Set a six-week plan. Weeks one and two: choose the music and lay down the jazz steps and isolations. Weeks three and four: build the turn and leap passages and clean the links between them. Week five: run the whole routine at full pace several times. Week six: rehearse in costume, on a hard floor, with the exact music file and timing.
- Time the routine with a stopwatch, including the entrance. Three minutes is shorter than it feels for a solo, so cut movement rather than speed up the music, and keep the ending crisp.
- Train the finer points that tricks would otherwise hide: spotting on turns, foot articulation, kick height held at the top, and the soft landing from each leap. Film the routine from the front and the side and compare it to the music.
- Practise recovering: if a turn wobbles or a step is missed, the dancer keeps going and rejoins the count. Rehearse that moment on purpose so it does not look like a collapse.
- After a result, ask for the critique and film the next rehearsal. Watching the routine back shows whether the accents are in time and whether the landings are clean.
- Ideas, not rules (ways to keep practice interesting): pick a track with a clear change in tempo and make the two halves look different; set a challenge to build the routine from three turn types and two leap types only; swap partners with another dancer for a day to see the stage picture from outside.
Frequently asked questions
Is Jazz No Acro judged individually or as a team?
Across eTalenter's templates it's most often run as an Individual entry, though an organiser can set either participation type when assigning the item to an age group.
What is the difference between Jazz No Acro and Jazz Acro?
In the edition covered here, Jazz No Acro bans tricks such as cartwheels, walkovers and headstands, while Jazz Acro allows acrobatic elements in the routine. A dancer enters whichever section matches the routine they have prepared.
Can I do a split leap or a high kick in Jazz No Acro?
The syllabus bans tricks such as cartwheels, walkovers and headstands and does not ban leaps or kicks, so jumps and kicks are the normal vocabulary of the section. When in doubt about a particular move, ask the organiser before entering.
How long can a Jazz No Acro routine be?
Up to three minutes for a solo and up to four minutes for a duo in this edition. The time limit is enforced and running over can bring a penalty from the adjudicator.
What is the difference between the Novice and Open levels?
Novice is for dancers who have not won first or second place in any competition in the last three years. Open is for dancers who have competed and placed first or second in the style, and anyone who took part in a national final in the last two years must enter Open. A Novice dancer who is alone in a section may ask to join the Open section.
Is there a published marking scheme for Jazz No Acro?
No. The edition prints no marking scale, criteria or points, only that the adjudicator’s decision is final and that a prize may be withheld if the standard is not met. The template carries a score out of 100 and the advice on this page is general guidance on what jazz judges usually weigh.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full group dance judging criteria guide, or browse every dance competition item.
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