Swingtacular 2024 Competitions
Swingtacular: The Galactic Open has always prided itself on creating a schedule that incorporates unique competitions/performances while leaving plenty of time for social dancing and workshops. You can click on any of the divisions below for information specific to that division.
General Competition Eligibility
Entry RequirementsTo compete at our event, you must:
– Have a full weekend pass. – Register for each competition by the official entry deadline. (See the weekend schedule.) – Pay any required entry fees. – Sign a legal waiver. (If you are under 18, your parent or guardian must sign for you.) *Minimum age requirement: 10 years old.* – Meet all other specific entry requirements outlined in these rules. *Note that it is our expectation that attendees read, understand, and abide by our Code of Conduct in all Swingtacular activities, including competitions. |
Role/Gender InclusivenessSwingtacular allows people of any gender to dance as a leader or follower. We encourage you to register for whatever role/division you feel will maximize you Swingtacular experience, assuming you qualify based on the parameters listed below...
– Individuals may not enter the same competition more than once, regardless of role. – Individuals may enter a maximum of two unique skill divisions within two different roles, however per WSDC rules, may only dance one level down from their “Primary” role, *without* petitioning. The WSDC recently adjusted their rules to allow for individuals to petition down two levels. Despite running competition preliminaries simultaneously, we are prepared to accommodate people that successfully petition two levels down if they wish. |
PETITION INFORMATION
There are separate forms for petitioning up versus petitioning down.
PETITIONS TO MOVE UP (Due by July 17th):
All petitions to “dance up” at events that take place after July 1, 2024 must be submitted to the
WSDC Chief Judges Committee (CJC) using this link: www.worldsdc.com/level-up-petition/.
The CJC will review the competitor’s Points Registry record and submitted videos, and reach out to the competitor for any additional information they need to make a decision. Please note that this new process takes time to complete. The CJC will notify the competitor of their decision to approve or deny the petition within three (3) weeks from the date of submission.
Petitions that are approved will allow the dancer to enter that higher-level division for six (6) months at any WSDC event anywhere in the world. Competitors will need to earn at least one point in that higher
division in order to keep dancing at that level after the six months have passed.
PETITIONS TO MOVE DOWN (Due by August 2nd 10PM):
Separate petitions are required to move up a division or move down a division.
To move down a division, petitions must be filled out and sent to: [email protected].
Get petition form HERE
Moving down petitions will be due by Friday, August 2nd at 10pm PST to the HJ.
You may register preemptively for a division you are petitioning to dance in, and if your petition is unsuccessful for any reason, we will refund the entry fee back to you. This is so that you can take advantage of the $25 entry fee, prior to it going up to $40 as of August 1st.
There are separate forms for petitioning up versus petitioning down.
PETITIONS TO MOVE UP (Due by July 17th):
All petitions to “dance up” at events that take place after July 1, 2024 must be submitted to the
WSDC Chief Judges Committee (CJC) using this link: www.worldsdc.com/level-up-petition/.
The CJC will review the competitor’s Points Registry record and submitted videos, and reach out to the competitor for any additional information they need to make a decision. Please note that this new process takes time to complete. The CJC will notify the competitor of their decision to approve or deny the petition within three (3) weeks from the date of submission.
Petitions that are approved will allow the dancer to enter that higher-level division for six (6) months at any WSDC event anywhere in the world. Competitors will need to earn at least one point in that higher
division in order to keep dancing at that level after the six months have passed.
PETITIONS TO MOVE DOWN (Due by August 2nd 10PM):
Separate petitions are required to move up a division or move down a division.
To move down a division, petitions must be filled out and sent to: [email protected].
Get petition form HERE
Moving down petitions will be due by Friday, August 2nd at 10pm PST to the HJ.
You may register preemptively for a division you are petitioning to dance in, and if your petition is unsuccessful for any reason, we will refund the entry fee back to you. This is so that you can take advantage of the $25 entry fee, prior to it going up to $40 as of August 1st.
Routine
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Jack & Jills
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Something
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*Click on competition for guidelines/description
*All Stars/Champions is open to any All Stars or Champions that do not qualify for the "Peer Vote" Invitational*
*Swingtacular is a proud member of the Rising Star Tour*
*All Stars/Champions is open to any All Stars or Champions that do not qualify for the "Peer Vote" Invitational*
*Swingtacular is a proud member of the Rising Star Tour*
Something Extra Different
All Galactic Power Hour (High/Low Mixer)
*No longer a competition*
All Galactic High-Low has been a fabulous way to kick off the weekend at Swingtacular since 2014 that was open to EVERY Swingtacularite, and was organized specifically for less experienced dancers to dance with more experienced dancers. More specifically, we would have Newcomer, Novice, and Intermediate level dancers (based on WSDC points. If you don't know what that is, don't worry about it. This is still open to YOU) draw from Advanced, All Star, and Champion level dancers. Considering the goal is about the experience for the attendees, dancing with dancers they may not always have the opportunity to, we decided to lean into that and remove the competition component. This will allow for more of our experienced dancers to participate (rather than judge). Last year, we did an organized High/Low Mixer which was great, but we decided to adjust it again to make it even better.
This year, we will have an All Galactic Power Hour (High/Low Mixer)
Credit to Michigan Classic which is where we (Ben and Cameo) experienced this for the first time, where they called it the "Ambassador Hour". The basic premise is that for an hour on Friday night, we will have a large majority of our All Star and Champion-Level dancers wearing a noticeable accessory. At Michigan Classic, they had LED wristbands. We will have a comparable identifier, TBA. This means that the All Star & Champion-Level participants can NOT dance with each other during this designated time. This also means that attendees may NOT ask those dancers to dance during this designated time on Friday night. However, those dancers will be in the ballroom with the intention of asking the attendees to dance. This is EXTREMELY important for the All Star and Champion-Level dancers to feel comfortable participating. We will also be shortening songs to about 90-120 seconds, so that everyone has a chance to dance with as many people as possible.
Relevant note from Ben McHenry:
"I have always loved social dancing, but have struggled mightily to enjoy it over the last 10 or so years, as the demand for my attention has increased, and truthfully, many people have become more and more entitled to my time, attention, and my body around social dancing. I am scared to approach the ballroom for social dancing, as 9 out of 10 times, it ends with multiple dancers expressing disappointment in me not being able to keep up with my dance card (normally up to 15-20+ dances from that point) after dancing for basically an hour+ straight. The "Power Hour" format makes me feel like everyone walks in with clear expectations, and I feel much more comfortable engaging and enjoying myself, while dancing with a bunch of humans I normally wouldn't have the chance to... Without the weight of trying to meet too many people's expectations, which is usually an impossible task."
*No longer a competition*
All Galactic High-Low has been a fabulous way to kick off the weekend at Swingtacular since 2014 that was open to EVERY Swingtacularite, and was organized specifically for less experienced dancers to dance with more experienced dancers. More specifically, we would have Newcomer, Novice, and Intermediate level dancers (based on WSDC points. If you don't know what that is, don't worry about it. This is still open to YOU) draw from Advanced, All Star, and Champion level dancers. Considering the goal is about the experience for the attendees, dancing with dancers they may not always have the opportunity to, we decided to lean into that and remove the competition component. This will allow for more of our experienced dancers to participate (rather than judge). Last year, we did an organized High/Low Mixer which was great, but we decided to adjust it again to make it even better.
This year, we will have an All Galactic Power Hour (High/Low Mixer)
Credit to Michigan Classic which is where we (Ben and Cameo) experienced this for the first time, where they called it the "Ambassador Hour". The basic premise is that for an hour on Friday night, we will have a large majority of our All Star and Champion-Level dancers wearing a noticeable accessory. At Michigan Classic, they had LED wristbands. We will have a comparable identifier, TBA. This means that the All Star & Champion-Level participants can NOT dance with each other during this designated time. This also means that attendees may NOT ask those dancers to dance during this designated time on Friday night. However, those dancers will be in the ballroom with the intention of asking the attendees to dance. This is EXTREMELY important for the All Star and Champion-Level dancers to feel comfortable participating. We will also be shortening songs to about 90-120 seconds, so that everyone has a chance to dance with as many people as possible.
Relevant note from Ben McHenry:
"I have always loved social dancing, but have struggled mightily to enjoy it over the last 10 or so years, as the demand for my attention has increased, and truthfully, many people have become more and more entitled to my time, attention, and my body around social dancing. I am scared to approach the ballroom for social dancing, as 9 out of 10 times, it ends with multiple dancers expressing disappointment in me not being able to keep up with my dance card (normally up to 15-20+ dances from that point) after dancing for basically an hour+ straight. The "Power Hour" format makes me feel like everyone walks in with clear expectations, and I feel much more comfortable engaging and enjoying myself, while dancing with a bunch of humans I normally wouldn't have the chance to... Without the weight of trying to meet too many people's expectations, which is usually an impossible task."
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