The Young Performers Club competitive showcases focus on the full performance including showmanship and technical abilities. The most common comments we hear from our judging panels is that the performers don’t own the stage, they don’t make the song their own, they lack confidence and don’t connect strongly enough with the audience. The judging structure includes fourteen different performance criteria which they score on a scale of 1-5 with 5 being the highest. It is a good idea to review the areas they focus on before your performance, and determine what you need to do to score some 5’s. There are many categories that are in your control and they can be considered easy points to earn. It is clear that performers who are dynamic and energetic on stage will do well in competitive events. Also, performers who show originality rise above the pack. The performance criteria included on the judging sheets follows:
- Confidence
- Creativity
- Stage Presence
- Eye Contact/Audience Engagement
- Styling
- Rhythm
- Originality
- Technical Skill
- Vocal Skill
- Consistency
- Smile Bonus
- Audience reaction
- Enthusiasm/personality/Are they having a good time?
- Technical dynamics
If you are performing in a band, it is important that the band be well-balanced and relate well to each other on stage. If all band members are doing their own thing, they will not appear as tight and some band members will stick out more than others. For all performers, it is important that they own the music and feel and show the rhythm of their songs. In our showcases, we rarely see performers smiling and looking like they are having a good time, so practice this when you are preparing for the showcase and identify sections of the songs where you can show your personality. Having two songs to perform enables performers to show some diversity. It also presents a challenge as both songs need to be consistently strong. You don’t need to perform originals to score in originality as you can make covers your own by working on a unique arrangement.
Be prepared and score yourself in the above categories to see where you are the weakest. Then develop a plan for getting the scores consistently strong across all categories. We have seen performers improve considerably from one show to the next, by focusing on the complete performance. Best of luck, and contact us any time you have any questions.