Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance Competition: What It Is, Where It's Run and How It's Judged

A team dance item in the Folk Dance part of a Trinidad and Tobago village competition, where a community group presents a traditional dance shaped by East Indian heritage and is scored out of 100.

Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance is the eighth-listed of the Traditional Influenced categories in the Folk Dance part of a national village competition in Trinidad and Tobago. It asks a village or community group to present a dance that grows out of the East Indian heritage of the islands, performed as a company with its own accompaniment.

The rules print a minimum of six dancers for every dance presentation, with no maximum. In eTalenter the item is one open team group, mixed gender, any language, marked out of 100. The template prints no time limit, so a team should ask the organiser how long the piece may run, what the stage allows, and who supplies the musicians or the recording.

A round runs like any other folk dance entry: the team is called, enters, performs and leaves while the panel marks each head. Content carries the largest share, 30 of 100, followed by Presentation at 25, so the panel looks first for dance that is recognisably rooted in its tradition and performed together with the beat.

It sits beside, but is separate from, Traditional East Indian Devotional Dance and Traditional Chutney Dance on the same template. Organisers run it so that the East Indian heritage has its own place in the programme next to the African, French, Spanish, British and First People forms.

Where Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance comes from

The competition rules list East Indian influenced dance as one of the traditional forms in the Folk Dance part, alongside categories for African, French, Spanish, British and First People influence. Which specific dances a group draws on is for the group and the organiser to confirm.

Where Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance is run

In eTalenter's data this item appears in one template: the Folk Dance part of a national village competition in Trinidad and Tobago, listed after Traditional First People Dance and before Traditional African Influenced Dance. This page makes no claim that it is judged the same way anywhere else.

• Trinidad and Tobago

Key facts

• Team entry by a village or community group; the rules print at least six dancers and no maximum.
• The category is defined by the East Indian tradition, so the group chooses the dance and should be able to explain its source.
• Marked out of 100: Choreography 20, Content 30, Presentation 25, Costume 20, Impact 5.
• The template prints no time limit; language is any. Confirm the time limit with the organiser.
• It is a different category from Traditional East Indian Devotional Dance and Traditional Chutney Dance, so check which one your dance belongs to.
• Idea starters, not rules: open with a slow processional entrance; build the pace in two clear steps; finish with a held group formation facing the panel.

On eTalenter, Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance 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, Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance is most often entered as an Team competition, typically scored out of 100.

What judges look at in Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance

What a Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance panel is actually weighing up, and where the marks are usually won or lost:

• Choreography (20): use of space, dynamics and creativity. Varied formations and a building pace earn marks; one pattern at one speed loses them.
• Content (30): dance vocabulary, authenticity of form and technique, and communication of the tradition. Marks are lost when the dance cannot be tied to its tradition or is padded with unrelated steps.
• Presentation (25): synchronisation, authenticity of accompaniment and execution. Dancers out of time with each other or the beat cost marks.
• Costume (20): authenticity, functionality and suitability. Dress that fits the tradition and lets dancers move safely scores; mismatched or restrictive costume loses marks.
• Impact (5): the overall effect, usually decided by a confident entrance and a united ending.

Treat these as the judging focus, not a fixed rubric: publish your own weighted criteria for Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance under Scoring Setup, or start from how judge scoring and tabulation software works.

How to prepare for Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance

How entrants and their teachers usually get Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance right on the day:

• Ask the organiser for the time limit, stage size, whether props are allowed, and which dances count under this heading rather than the devotional or chutney categories.
• List at least six dancers, since six is the printed minimum.
• Learn the dance from a knowledgeable elder, teacher or cultural group, and note where it comes from.
• Write the running order: entrance, each section, formation changes and the final image, and rehearse it exactly as written.
• Practise with the real musicians or the exact recording early so every change of pace is known.
• Rehearse in full costume at least twice and check nothing restricts movement or slips on the day.
• Be ready to say in one sentence what the dance is and where it comes from.
• After a first-round loss, ask which head scored lowest and rework that part first.

Frequently asked questions

Is Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance 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.

How many dancers are needed for Traditional East Indian Influenced Dance?

The rules print a minimum of six dancers for dance presentations and no maximum. Check any extra limits with the organiser.

Is it the same as Traditional East Indian Devotional Dance?

No. They are separate categories on the same template. Confirm with the organiser which one suits your dance.

Which dance should a group choose?

The template names the tradition, not one dance, so ask what is accepted and choose a dance your community can perform authentically.

How is the dance marked?

Out of 100: Choreography 20, Content 30, Presentation 25, Costume 20 and Impact 5.

Want the full judging picture? Read how judge scoring and tabulation software works, or browse every dance competition item.

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