A solo section in which one performer sings and dances in the same routine, up to three minutes long and marked out of 100 on eleven dance templates in Australia and Scotland.
Song and Dance is the section where one performer does both jobs at once: they sing, in their own voice, and move to the song as part of a single prepared routine. It sits between a singing item and a dance item, so the entry has to work as both. The song is usually drawn from musical theatre, film or stage shows, and the choreography tells the story of the lyric instead of simply decorating it. A strong entry feels like a short scene with a beginning, a build and a clear ending.
A round is one solo on the stage floor. The performer is announced, takes a starting position and performs the routine to a backing track. The adjudicator watches how steadily the voice carries while the body is moving, whether the breath control survives the big steps, whether the words can be understood, and whether the movement suits the song and the performer's age. The hardest part is balance: a routine that is all dancing leaves the voice thin, and one that is all singing wastes the section. Placings often turn on who keeps the voice secure through the most active moments.
On the Shine Bright Dance Challenge template, which this page is written from, Song and Dance is a solo section. Babies Under 6 perform it as one group, and each age from 7 to 15, then 16-17 and 18 and over, is offered at four levels: Specially Restricted, Restricted, Open and Advance, so the template carries 45 groups for this one style. The syllabus gives solos up to three minutes, boys and girls compete together, no language is set, and every entry is marked out of 100 under the label Marks. No criteria or mark bands are printed for the section, so none are installed and the adjudicator's own sheet decides.
Organisers run Song and Dance because it gives performers who train in singing, dance and drama a class that suits all three, and because it is a crowd pleaser in a long programme. For a coordinator using eTalenter it is entered like any other item: register the performer in the right age and level group, record the adjudicator's mark out of 100, and the placing follows within that group. Song and Dance is separate from the Song and Dance Troupe section, which is performed by teams, so check whether the entry is a solo or a group before building the programme.
Where Song and Dance is run
In eTalenter's data Song and Dance appears on eleven dance templates: ten in Australia, from studio-run dance challenges to long-running festivals, and one Scottish music, speech and dance festival. It is a solo on all of them and, where times are printed, solos run up to three minutes, marked out of 100. Singing-and-dancing sections of this kind are also a regular part of dance festivals, eisteddfods and musical theatre classes in the United Kingdom, Ireland, New Zealand, Canada and the United States.
- Australia
- Scotland
- United Kingdom
- New Zealand
Key facts
- Individual (solo) entry on the Shine Bright Dance Challenge template; boys and girls compete together.
- Babies Under 6 as one group, then ages 7 to 15, 16-17 and 18 and over, each at four levels (Specially Restricted, Restricted, Open, Advance): 45 groups in all.
- Time limit in the template: 3 minutes for solos, including the singing.
- Marks out of 100 under the label Marks; no criteria are printed, so the adjudicator's sheet decides.
- Appears on 11 templates in eTalenter's data, 10 Australian and 1 Scottish.
- Idea starters, not rules: a song from a stage musical acted out as a short scene, a song that changes mood halfway so the dance changes with it, or a simple number with a held note on a still pose to show breath control.
On eTalenter, Song and Dance is filed under Dance and typically scored with Marks. It appears in 11 ready-made event templates — each one can adjust its time limit, age-group assignment and scoring setup independently.
Across the templates that use it, Song and Dance is most often entered as an Individual competition, typically scored out of 100, commonly time-limited to 2–5 minutes where a limit is set.
What judges look at in Song and Dance
What a Song and Dance panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:
- Vocal quality: pitch, tone and clear words that stay secure while the performer is moving, not just when they are standing still.
- Breath control: choreography placed so the performer can breathe before long phrases, with no gasping or thin notes after big steps.
- Movement and technique: clean, controlled dance steps that suit the performer's age and level, with no stumbling or tentative moves.
- Storytelling and expression: the face, gestures and choreography carrying the meaning of the lyric, so it feels like a scene rather than a song with steps.
- Integration: singing and dancing treated as one routine, with the movement helping the song and not competing with it.
- Presentation: a confident entrance and ending, a routine that fits inside the three-minute limit, and a costume and track that suit the song.
Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Song and Dance under Scoring Setup, or start from the full group dance judging criteria guide.
How to prepare for Song and Dance
How entrants and their teachers usually get Song and Dance right on the day:
- Pick a song the performer can sing comfortably while moving; a slightly easier key often sounds better than a showy one that cracks on the big step.
- Rehearse the singing alone first, then the dance alone, then join them, and mark the breaths on the lyric so the choreography leaves room for them.
- Run the full routine at performance speed again and again so breathing under movement becomes automatic, then rehearse it once more at the end of a tiring session.
- Make sure every word can be understood: practise clear consonants and avoid choreography that turns the head away from the audience on key lines.
- Choose a backing track with a clean ending and a clear count in, and check that the whole piece, including any intro, fits inside three minutes.
- Give the routine a clear shape: a strong opening pose, a build to a high point and a finished final pose, so the adjudicator sees an arc and not a list of steps.
- Choose the level honestly from the printed definitions of Specially Restricted, Restricted, Open and Advance; entering the wrong level can lose the performer their placing.
- After a result, ask the adjudicator or teacher which two things cost the most marks, and rehearse those before the next entry.
Frequently asked questions
Is Song and Dance 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 Song and Dance in a dance competition?
It is a solo class in which the performer sings and dances in the same routine, usually to a song from musical theatre or film. It is marked on both parts together, so a routine that is only dancing or only singing is not what the section asks for.
How long is a Song and Dance solo?
The Shine Bright Dance Challenge syllabus gives solos up to three minutes, including the singing. Other events may print a different time, so check the syllabus for the event you are entering.
Is Song and Dance the same as Musical Theatre?
Not exactly. Musical Theatre is a separate section on this template, usually built around acting a number from a stage show, while Song and Dance centres on a routine where the performer sings and dances. The two can overlap in style, so read the syllabus wording for each section before choosing.
How is Song and Dance judged?
It is marked out of 100 by the adjudicator. The syllabus prints no criteria or mark bands for the section, so the adjudicator's own sheet applies; panels generally weigh vocal quality, movement, storytelling and how well the two are combined.
Which level should a performer enter?
The syllabus defines four levels: Specially Restricted for a performer who has never won the style, Restricted for one who has won Specially Restricted but not Restricted, Open for one who has won both or dances more than 13 hours a week, and Advance for one who has placed first in a section with more than two other dancers in the past 12 months or is a part-time dance student. Babies sections do not count towards these levels.
Want the full judging picture? Read the full group dance judging criteria guide, or browse every dance competition item.
Try Song and Dance in eTalenter
See every ready-made template that runs Song and Dance, and install one as a live event — age groups, rules and scoring included.
