2025- 2026 SEASON RULES

GDO RULES & REGULATIONS 2025/2026

 

Please read the following rules and regulations carefully. Failure to comply with the GDO rules may result in disqualification from the competition. These rules may differ from other competitions, so please read carefully.

Global Dance Open is organized by Ultimate Dance Productions Ltd, registered in the UK. 

 

Inscripting in the competition, implies understanding and compliance with the rules.

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1. Participation

2. Membership

3. Age Divisions

4. Entry Types

5. Time Limits

6. Inscriptions

7. Music

8. Age-Appropriateness 

9. Pas de Deux

10. Props

11. Boys Sections

12. Musical Theatre

13. Deadlines

14. Performance conditions

15. Pointe shoes

16. Costumes

17. Judges

18. Scoring System

19. Reclassification 

20. Scholarships and Prizes

21. Code of Conduct

22. Qualification

23. Virtual Qualification

24. Terms and Conditions

25. Refunds & Cancellations

26. Permissions

27.  Invoices

 28.    Finals

 

1. Participation

• GDO is open to all nationalities to participate 

• Participation is either independently or by dance studio

• All dancers must qualifier at a country qualifier or virtual qualifier. 

• Dancer’s must represent the country in which their dance studio is located

• Dancer’s that live in a country with a live qualifier must attend that event. Virtual qualification is not possible.

• Dancers can only represent one country at the finals, irrespective of whether they train in multiple countries.

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2. Membership

1. All dancers must have valid annual membership to participate in any GDO event (valid 1 season) This is automatically added on your account when inscripting

2. Annual membership is 10£ and is non-refundable

 

3. Age Divisions

• MINI: 5-8 years

• JUNIOR: 9-11 years

• TEEN: 12-14 years

• INTERMEDIATE: 15-17 years

• SENIOR: 18-29 years

 

1. Age is taken from 1 January 2026

2. In Duet/Trio/Crew/Ensembles, the age division is taken by the oldest dancer

3. Dancer’s must compete in their correct age division in solos

4. GDO reserves the right to check identity cards at the Semi-finals or Finals

 

Please read carefully, as some age divisions (specifically for Mini & Senior ensembles) have been updated.

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4. Entry Types

Solo: 1 Dancer

All age divisions:

• Ballet Repertoire

• Neoclassical

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Acrodance

• Lyrical

• Showdance

• Tap

• Musical Theatre

• Folklore

• Hip-Hop/Street/Commercial

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Duet/Trio: 2-3 dancers

All age divisions:

• Ballet (Includes repertoire and non-repertoire)

• Neoclassical (Not applicable for Mini)

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Acrodance

• Lyrical

• Showdance

• Tap

• Musical Theatre

• Folkore

• Hip-Hop/Street/Commercial

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Small Ensemble: 4-10 dancers

Junior, Teen, Intermediate Divisions:

• Classical (Includes Repertoire, Non-Repertoire & Neoclassical)

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Acrodance

• Lyrical

• Showdance

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Senior Divisions:

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Lyrical

• Showdance

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Large Ensemble: 11+ dancers

Junior, Teen, Intermediate Divisions:

• Classical (Includes Repertoire, Non-Repertoire & Neoclassical)

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Acrodance

• Lyrical

• Showdance

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Senior Divisions:

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Lyrical

• Showdance

 

Ensemble: 4+ dancers

Mini Divisions

• Classical (Includes Ballet & Neoclassical)

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Lyrical

• Showdance

• Tap

• Acrodance

• Musical Theatre

• Folklore

• Hip-Hop/Street/Commercial

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Junior, Teen, Intermediate Divisions:

• Tap

• Musical Theatre

• Folklore

 

Senior Divisions:

• Classical (Includes Ballet & Neoclassical)

• Acrodance

• Musical Theatre

• Tap

• National/Folklore

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Hip/Hop/ Street/ Commercial

• Small Crew: 4-10 dancers

• (All age divisions except Mini: Hip-Hop/Street/Commercial)

•  Large Crew: 11 + dancers

• (All age divisions except Mini: Hip-Hop/Street/Commercial)

 

1. There will be backstage to ensure the number of the dancers performing is the same as that registered

2. There will be a 50€ fine per additional dancer not registered, as well as the missing inscriptions.

3. Please note that there is no longer neoclassical ensembles for 2025/26- neoclassical ensembles should be placed in the ‘Classical (Includes Ballet & Neoclassical) category

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5. Time Limits

• Solo: 2:15min (NEW for 2026, exception for Ballet Repertoire solos)

• Duet/Trio: 2:45mins

• Small Ensemble/Crew: 3:30mins

• Large Ensembles/Crew: 4:00mins

• Mini Ensembles/Crew: 3:00min

• Junior, Teen, Intermediate & Senior Ensembles: 4:00 mins

• Pas de Deux: 6:00 mins 

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1. Music longer will not be accepted into the system

2. These are maximum times, routines may be shorter

 

6. Inscriptions

1. Inscriptions must be made through the GDO dancecompgenie platform: http://globaldanceopen.dancecompgenie.com/

2. Dance studios must make an account. Please ensure you use an email you wish to receive communications. Be careful with email spelling to avoid communication problems.

3. Dance teachers (person responsible for inscriptions) are responsible to ensure legal names are spelt correctly and date of birth is correct.

4. Incorrect naming spelling and date of births will create issues as results, photos and videos are all connected to this info on dakiki app

5. Should a dancer be found to have entered the wrong D.O.B, they may be disqualified. This will be a decision made by head office.

6. Dancers can enter as many solos as they wish at qualifiers, e.g: if a dancer enters 2 variations in the same category, only the highest score will receive medal if placed & only the highest score will be invited to finals if invited.

 

7. Music

Music cannot contain swearing or offensive in any language. Music must not contain swearing, offensive or discriminatory language in any form. This includes (but is not limited to) the following:

• F***

• S***

• B****

• N*****

• C***

• Racial, sexual, or derogatory slurs 

Any music containing inappropriate content will result in disqualification or the requirement to submit a clean version.

1. Music must be submitted via the online platform- music emailed will not be accepted

2. Music is the responsibility of the dance teacher, who should check and verify before uploading and after uploading.

3. Dance teachers should keep a copy of music on a USB at events to allow easy access should there be any issue. Music on phones are never accepted.

 

8. Age-Appropriateness 

• Dance teachers must take into serious consideration age-appropriateness of choreographies.Over sexualized content will not be permitted at GDO.

• Adult themes such as cabaret, should not be used for Mini or Junior dancers

• Should a judge consider a routine is inappropriate for an age division, the routine will not be placed.

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9. Pas de Deux

• Eligible for Teen, Intermediate & Senior

• Maximum duration: 6 minutes

• The performance may include:

• Adagio & Coda

• Please note, coda is optional (you may perform only the Adagio if preferred)

• One single audio file only- The entire piece (Adagio and Coda, if included) must be edited into one continuous track. No separate tracks allowed for Adagio and Coda

• Must be selected from the Classical Repertoire List 

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10. Props

• Props must be carried on and off stage by competitors, except for Mini/Junior dancers who may accept help from one adult. Any adult helping with a prop cannot wear clothing that displays dance school name.

• 20 second time limit to place to prop

• Props should be placed onstage and removed at end of choreography (No unweighted helium balloons)

• Props must be actively used be competitor. Scenery is not allowed.

• If judges determine the prop is not relevant or not used in a choreography, it will result in point deduction.

• No dangerous props are allowed (swords, fire, helium balloons)

• Glass props are not allowed

• No props that leave behind dust, smoke or uncleanable mess should be used.

• No liquids- bubbles/water

• No live animals

• Country flags cannot be used in choreographies

• Any props that involved mess (e.g paper, petal, etc) must be cleaned up by the participants as quickly as possible. It is advised against using this in choreographies.

• GDO does not take responsibility for the safe keeping of props at the event. Studios are responsible for the transport and safe keeping of props.

• GDO does not take responsibility for any injury caused by props backstage to dancers/teachers.

 

11. Boys Sections

The following solo categories are split into boy divisions

• Ballet Repertoire

• Contemporary

• Jazz

• Lyrical

 

12. Musical Theatre

• Backing tracks must not contain any vocals. Tracks with vocals will result in immediate disqualification or the requirement to submit a clean version.

• Participants will have a choice between headset or hand-held microphone where available.

• All soloists and duet/trio must use a form of microphone.

• 4 headset/microphones per group maximum will be permitted

• All dancers in a group must sing- ensemble members must also sing

 

13. Deadlines

• Inscriptions are due in full on the closing of inscriptions

• Payments submitted after the closing date will be subjected to a 10% late fee

• Inscriptions will not be finalised until payment is made and choreographies will not be scheduled

 

14. Performance conditions

• No lighting effects are allowed at qualifiers or finals

• If music stops during a performance due to a theatre fault, the dancer(s) will get the opportunity to dance again.

• If music is uploaded wrong, the performance will not be allowed to repeat

• If a dancer forgets their dance, they will not be allowed to dance again.

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15. Pointe shoes

• Dancers must be 12 years old to perform in pointe shoes- solos/duet/trio/ensembles

• Intermediate & Senior MUST wear pointe shoes in the solo repertoire section

• Pointe shoes can only be worn in Ballet Repertoire & Neoclassical sections (not contemporary)

• Dancers under 12 years cannot wear pointe shoes in any choreography in the competition. There will be checks by backstage teams and if underage dancers use pointe shoes, it can result in disqualification.

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16. Costumes

• All costumes should underline the character of the dance 

• Costumes MUST be age appropriate

• Appearance and grooming are important and will be taken into the consideration by the jury.

• Costumes should leave no mess on stage (feathers, sequins, etc). It is performer’s responsibility to remove from any debris from the stage. 

• Should the stage require cleaning of more than 1 min, a point reduction will be applied.

• Costumes can change between semi-final and final.

 

17. Judges

• The competition’s jury panel will comprise highly recognized judges within the dance community

• Judges are completely independent 

• The decision of the judges is final. No appeal can be made.

• Judges’ comments are provided for the qualifiers only. There will be no feedback at the finals.

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18. Scoring System

1. Technical Mark: 50 marks

2. Artistic Mark: 50 marks

 

Podium placements will not be granted unless the prescribed minimum score has been attained.

Minimum marks

75 marks is needed to be awarded 3rd place (Bronze)

80 marks is needed to be awarded 2nd place (Silver)

85 marks is needed to be awarded 1st place (Gold)

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19. Reclassification 

Please refer to our style descriptions page for style descriptions. If there is a doubt on the choreography, please send a video to the GDO for clarification: info@globaldanceopen.com

 

Reclassification Process:

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1. The routine will be moved to the correct category at the end of the whole competition.

2. If the routine is in qualifying position, it will be decided by the GDO whether they will receive an invitation to the final.

3. Routines moved are not eligible for re-adjudication or appeal.

 

20. Scholarships and Prizes

• Medals and/or trophies will be awarded as prizes

• Scholarships will be chosen and awarded by our judges

• Scholarships are not based on medal placement but at judge’s discretion.

 

21. Code of Conduct

• Dancers and parents should not approach GDO staff regarding queries of a routine or other concern. All queries must be directed to the school director who will bring it under the attention to a GDO Director.

• GDO prides itself on creating a safe & supportive atmosphere where dancers can share their talent & meet people from all over their globe. Competitor should always act in a friendly manner toward their fellow competitors.

• Everyone should work together to make each GDO Event a very memorable occasion with all of the dancers getting along in a friendly manner. We expect all dancers be good losers and also good winners.

• Acts of violence and intimidation against Organizers, Judges or Competitors will not be tolerated on or off the premises at any time

 

22. Qualification

 

1. All routines must qualify via their national live country qualifier or national virtual qualifier.

2. The minimum qualification mark is 75 points

3. Scoring 75 points does not guarantee qualification

4. Independent dancers must enter under their country of residence if they do not attend a dance studio. 

5. Dancer’s representing a studio must qualify and represent the country where their dance studio is located.

6. Dancers cannot represent 2 countries at the finals. If they train in multiple countries, they must select one country to represent and qualify their solos, duet/trios & ensembles in that country

7. Virtual qualification is only for dancers in countries without a live qualifier

 

 

Notes:

1. Qualification and medal placement are not connected at qualifiers.  

2. Receiving a medal does not always mean successful qualification, a qualifying list will be sent out after the competition.

3. Dancers may not repeat choreographies/variations 2 years consecutively that have been performed at the finals.

4. If a dance studio repeats a choreography from a previous year, all dancers must be different.

5. GDO reserves the right to invite a ‘Wild Card’ choreography to participate in the finals at the end of all the qualifiers.

 

Solos

Junior, Teen & Intermediate Sections:

• Upper Division: All solos (per age division and category) with a score over 90 points will qualify and be placed in the Upper Division at the finals

• Main Division: The top 2 solos (per age division and category) with a score between 75-89 points will qualify and be placed in the Main Division at the finals.

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Solo categories with Upper Division & Main Division:

1. Repertoire

2. Neoclassical

3. Contemporary

4. Jazz

5. Lyrical

6. Acro 

7. Showdance

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Mini & Senior Sections: 

• The top 3 solos (per age division & category) over 75 points will be invited to the finals. All solos that achieve over 90 points will be given an invitation to finals.

 

Boys & Tap Category: 

• The top 4 solos (per age division & category) over 75 points will be invited to the finals. All solos that achieve over 90 points will be given an invitation to finals.

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Other Categories (Musical Theatre, Hip-Hop/ Street/ Commercial & National): 

• The top 3 solos (per age division & category) over 75 points will be invited to the finals

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Duet/Trio & Ensembles/Crews

• Top 4 choreographies (per age division and category) over 75 points will qualify for the finals in the following categories:

1. Ballet

2. Contemporary

3. Jazz

4. Lyrical 

5. Showdance

6. Neoclassical/Classical

 

• Top 3 choreographies (per age division and category) over 75 points will qualify for the finals in the following categories:

1. Acro

2. Hip-Hop/Street/Commercial

3. National 

4. Tap

5. Musical Theatre

If there are more than the allocated places that receive over 90 points, all will gain invitations to finals.

 

23. Virtual Qualification- Only for dancers in countries with no live qualifier.

 

• Virtual qualification will take place with pre-recorded videos 

• 3 international judges will be present and there are the same opportunities to qualify for finals or be nominated for special prizes

• Video guidelines must be adhered to. Videos that do not meet the criteria will not be scored and not be eligible for refund.

 

Video Guidelines:

1. Videos must be submitted at least 7 days before the qualifier date (e.g. Qualifier is 14 February, videos must be uploaded by the 7th of February)

2. Videos must have no logos, competition banners or advertising of any kind.

3. Videos must be landscape

4. Videos must always have the full dancer’s body must be always visible

5. Videos cannot be edited or merged

6. Videos must be a complete choreography from beginning to end.

7. Videos must be filmed within the last 6 months

 

24. Terms and Conditions

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1. Payments

Payments are made via bank transfer to the appropriate details in the relevant currency.

• Ensure that payments are clearly labelled to help with identifications: Dance studio name, country qualifier

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2. Travel & Accommodation

• GDO is not responsible for any travel and accommodation costs in relation to any GDO qualifier or finals.

• GDO cannot assist in the organisation of any visa applications, it is the responsibility of the dance school/parent to arrange these if needed.

• GDO shall not be liable to any parent or other members, teachers, students competitors or any other party (a Third Party) for any loss that may suffer as a result of the occurrence of an event or a series of events (including but not limited to Acts of God, Government intervention or advise against organized social gatherings or the undertaking of sporting events, political unrest, war or threat of war, riots, civil strife, closure of airports or ports, natural disasters, fire epidemic or pandemic) which results in: the Third Party being unable or unwilling to travel to and or attend the event or the event having to be postponed or cancelled by GDO.

 

25. Refunds & Cancellations

• GDO has a Non-Refundable Policy.

• There will be no refund made to dance schools for a cancellation of an entry

• By making a purchase with GDO, you are confirming that you have read through our rules and understood our no refund policy

• Dancer’s unable to compete due to injury must provide medial evidence (translated in English) for a credit refund to be used at future events. The inscription fee amount will be credited in the dance studio account.

• Medical evidence must be sent prior to the event, medical evidence provided after an event will not be eligible for any credit refund

• Cash refunds are not avaialble

• Membership and registration fees are non-refundable

• If GDO cancels an event, a full refund will be issued.

 

26. Permissions

• By entering a GDO event, permission is automarically granted to GDO to video, photogrpah and record dancers at any time during the GDO event.

• Videos/photos may be used by GDO for advertising and promotional materials, both online and printed.

• By entering a GDO event, you agree to all our rules.

• Permission to send emails regarding entries, rules, schedules and future GDO event is granted when registering for a GDO event.

• At any event with an official GDO photographer & videographer, audience members are not allowed to photograph and video.

• If you do not wish to appear in any publicity, you must email info@globaldanceopen.com prior to the event.

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27.  Invoices

• Invoices are generated inside your dancecompgenie account.

• Please ensure you add tax details to issue this.

• Insurance

• Ultimate Dance Productions is not responsible for any injuries that may occur to any person, including a participant, teach or audience member, whilst in the theatre, backstage, on stage or within the venue.

• It is each dance school’s responsiblility to take out their own insurance(s) for their students to attend GDO events.

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28. Finals

 

1. Participation

 

• Participants may only compete with one solo in each category at the Finals.

• Participants may only take part in one duet/trio in each category at the Finals.

• Should dancers participate more than once in a group category, be prepared for quick costume changes.

• Dancers should be available the full Finals until announced the styles of each day

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2. Choreography

• Dancers cannot change the music or choreography between semi-final qualifiers & finals. Small changes can be made for improvement

• Dancers in Ballet Repertoire section must perform the SAME variation chosen for the semi-final qualifier (change of variation is subject to immediate disqualification)

• A choreography can only be entered once in the competition, e.g the same solo/duet/trio/group cannot be entered in multiple dance styles

 

3. Substitute Dancers

• The dancer of a Solo cannot be altered between qualifiers and finals

• One member of a duet/trio may be substituted between the qualifier and final (as long as the dancer competed at the qualifier)

• Group members may be substituted between the qualifier and the final, provided the dancer has competed in the qualifier.

• Any changed should not affect the age division/ entry type

• Any decisions on substituting dancers by the organisation are final

• All changes must be notified to Head Office: info@globaldanceopen.com