Youth America Grand Prix

All Regionals

General

Reviewer

Dancer Age

Competition experience

Event Details

Round

Regional

Season

Location

Traveled to compete

Regional was the closest

Why this location

"Our ballet school chose this location"
"Timing and studio recommendation"
"Our studio requested we go to this location"
"Our director chose this location because it is a larger city than our closest regional. She said there are more opportunities for visibility and scholarships at larger events."
"We chose Spain this year for the international experience."
"It was chosen by the director of the studio where my child dances"
"School selected"
"the dates worked for our schedule"
"New location"
"The studio chose it for us."
"Chosen by the team due to a advantageous date"

Regionals attended

Rationale for multiple regionals

"My dancer thought it was helpful to hear different feedback from the various judges at each location. She felt she improved with her stage presence and technique with each regional she attended."
"My student was in their first year of competing and had next to no experience performing solos onstage. Having the chance to dance multiple times without the pressure of being eligible to win was very beneficial."
"Certain dancers/schools always place no matter what"
"It was helpful because she got more stage experience, saw different dancers, and got feedback from different judges."
"Personally, my ideal number of competitions to attend in one season is 2. By the 3rd, I feel burnt out, and we start missing too much school (regular school). I think just one would feel like not enough. 2 let's you take critiques from the first performance and apply it to the second."
"I participated in the same competition multiple times."
"To show progress, and meet different judges"
"We did not want to do one of the locations the school wanted but they guilted us and said we had to because my dancer was there best dancer to represent."
"It gave her multiple opportunities to perform and be seen by judges."
"Looking back I do not think it was beneficial to attend multiple regionals because my dancer already has opportunities to perform in full length ballet productions. She has also never received any placements or scholarships and I don't see that changing."

Who encouraged multiple regionals

Competition Encouragement for Multiple Regionals

"They wanted our dancer to get more performance opportunities. They wanted her to get more comfortable under high pressure circumstances."
"To gain valuable performance experience prior to Finals. All regionals after the first one were free and student was no longer eligible to place."
"Better chance at placement"
"Better placement and experience"
"More chances to do well and possibly be chosen for finals."

School Encouragement for Multiple Regionals

"Same answer as last question"
"To better chances of winning the top prize"
"School recommends up to 2 regionals for dancers who desire more time on stage or want more than one opportunity to be seen for finals and scholarship opportunities. Also to get different judges."
"More opportunities and exposure"
"Better chance at placement"
"Our studio attends multiple venues purely for the experience (performing on a stage + participating in master classes + getting to watch other dancers). If you're going to work hard on a dance, might as well perform it more than once."
"It was a big competition, possibly offering a lot of opportunities."
"Be seen by more judges, possibly more offers from different schools"
"We did not need my encouragement, my daughter enjoyed the first and wanted to experience others. The goal was to show progress over time"
"Better placement and experience, and for the school to bring numbers since they are a partner school."
"Likely a money grab"
"Teacher wanted to give students multiple opportunities to performs solos and compete with the hope of improving after the first one earlier in the season."

Entry affiliation

Did Dancer Miss School?

Days of school missed

Attended master classes

Master Classes

Why no master class

"Conflicted with travel plans"
"It was the same day/time as the St Patrick’s Day dyeing the river Green Party and we didn’t want to deal with crowds/drunk people."
"The weather was bad and not located near the performance venue."

Master Class Types

Master class teachers

Repeated Responses:

"Judges" (3 responses)

Unique Responses:

"Erica Fischbah from Colorado ballet and she doesn’t remember who taught contemporary but thinks it was Alicia Holloway"
"Cant remember offhand but we do keep a combined list of all teachers from 2 yrs of UBC and YAGP and UBC finals. What I can say is - we have been impressed with the instructors at both. (This particular review is for yagp only)."
"Ruben Martin for technique director of the International Ballet Academy. I am not sure who I had for contemporary"
"Master classes were a great experience"
"Jury members"
"Different judges"
"I don't recall who taught the classes. My daughter always loves the master classes, although she said some girls in them are not serious and goof around which is distracting."
"Tim Almaas, Jan Broeckx, Samuel Van der Veer, Ernst Meisner, Juliana Sabino Wilhelm, Agnes Noltenius, Aram Manukyan, Jose Carayol, Nicholas Ziegler, Dmitri Kulev"
"Larissa Saveliev, Gennadi Saveliev, Leanne Benjamin, Ashley McNeil"
"Maria Konrad"
"James Payne"
"Can't remember"
"Barry Kerollis, Diana White, Dmitri Kulev, Sebastian Vinet та Gennadi Saveliev"
"Kenta Kura Gennadi Saveliev"
"Guest teachers from the Paris opera ballet school and outside. Mostly big names from the dance industry, like Platel, but only for solist master classes (not for ensemble master classes)."
"Competition directors"
"Head of Nevada Ballet(judge), contemporary was also a judge but not from a school/company"
"Can't recall."
"Judges/ artistic stuff from big ballet schools"
"Natalia B"
"Rachel Nye and Berry Karolis"
"I can’t recall the one for this location. "
"Era Jouravlev"
"Staff brought in by the competition"
"Usually the judges for comps teach master classes"
"Peter Stark"
"Can’t recall"
"José Carayol, Frederic Olivieri, Gennadi Saveliev"
"Ashley Bouder taught technique, and John Selya taught contemporary."

Distance from venue

Received corrections

How corrections were given

"The corrections were mostly general to the group but they definitely favored focusing on students they knew and have won in the past."
"Group and individual, with emphasis on individuals"
"My class was small so it felt like everyone was getting individual feedback which was fabulous."
"Corrections given to the group."
"Corrections were given both individually and to group"
"Dancer was lucky to be used as an example. Otherwise mostly general corrections were given to the group"
"I do not remember the corrections, but she did feel seen while in the room."
"Corrections were given to the group and sometimes one-on-one"
"Mostly to the whole group, but they also gave some one-on-one corrections."
"corrections were given to individuals"
"We got corrections as a group, and sometimes the teacher gave individual corrections too"
"Corrections were given to some individual dancers, not all. Often corrections would take place to one side while large groups still dancing were ignored"
"Group and individual"
"Corrections are given to the group"
"To the group and also given to individuals for both instructors"
"Dancer said not everyone was given corrections. Teachers referred to some dancers specifically by name and gave them the most attention/corrections/feedback."
"Some ballet masters were addressing group but she also received few individual corrections"
"Do not temember"
"He received one correction and one compliment during the class."
"Mostly group corrections with a couple of individual corrections."
"Corrections were given to each individual when the teachers saw that something is not articulated properly"
"Individual corrects. Group corrections."
"Given both to the group and individually like a normal class environment."
"In technique, corrections were given to the group as well as individually. Some individual corrections would be presented/demonstrated to the rest of the class as well."

What corrections were about

Repeated Responses:

"Dancing" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"My dancer said her ballet master teacher, Ms Fischbach, encouraged the students to condition for ballet outside of class. She gave them a conditioning warm-up at the beginning of the ballet master class as an example of what to do. She had them do planks, arm circles and crunches before they started their technique class."
"Purely professional corrections regarding technique, placement, etc. intended to improve her skills"
"People were getting corrected on their timing mainly and working through every movement with intention."
"Corrections were for the dancing/barre/center"
"Mostly encouraging and neutral"
"I don't recall, but she did not receive any coded corrections or anything that was out of the ordinary/harmful."
"They were mostly about technique and how she was dancing"
"Mostly about technique, placement and how to make the movement cleaner. Nothing weird, just normal dance corrections."
"about placement, technique, dancing"
"Mostly technique, placement, musicality, and performance. The teachers were really helpful and encouraging"
"Yes, coded words were used, some comments of surprise about the jumping ability of some dancers implying they looked too heavy to be able to"
"Zero coded. Highly professional"
"Corrections about the technique"
"They were all technique and position related."
"My dancer only remembers one female teacher complimenting her feet. She did not receive many corrections."
"They were about technique"
"No, teachers are always professional and helpful."
"Dancing - specific technique at the barre"
"Technical corrections."
"They were polite and patient. The only time when they were a little irritated was when a girl started some kind of contortion instead of grand battement after the explanation"
"Positive and helpful comments were made for improvement."
"Corrections I received were about dancing: how to improve a penché in center, which muscles to think of using, etc."

Anatomical language

Correction tone

Negative correction details

"Negative in something that needed to be fixed, but not done in a mean way."

Teacher engagement

"Both instructors were walking around actively correcting the students. They definitely seemed present and excited to teach!"
"Engaged and caring, walking around room - nothing phoned in - not going through the motions. Complaint re houston master classes has to do with location in hotel adjacent to venue (U of H) - in a ballroom with Marley thrown down - not ideal. Other option would have been to move master classes to a location 10+ miles away - so I think they chose locational convenience for families. But master classes suffered a bit due to this. Unsure if mirrors were in the space - I believe no."
"Very engaged, the classes were very hard and we spent a lot of time in the center and across the floor!"
"They were very energetic and walked around the room and we were very involved with the dancers"
"Masterclasses were positive with the instructor conducting it like a regular dance class."
"Engaged"
"They were pretty engaging, walking around with positive, high energy"
"Only watched/gave corrections to 2-3 dancers. Ignored the rest."
"My daughter felt the master classes were fine. The teacher moved around the room."
"The teachers were super involved. They walked around, demonstrated, and gave corrections the whole time"
"The teachers were really involved. They walked around, showed things, and gave corrections the whole class. Good energy overall."
"The Masterclasses at this competition and other YAGP seem like an afterthought… tight spaces/ crowded, minimal attention given to most dancers; no numbers worn which makes it hard to believe that classes are used to give scholarships; we notice that some dancers competed but did not attend the classes (they were at another YAGP event in Europe)"
"Way too many kids. So many they didn't fit in the room. Shortest 10 were moved down an age group which really stinks for advanced, short dancers who then had to take class with 8 year olds."
"James Payne was wonderful. Engaged and helpful"
"Since parents are not allowed to watch the masterclasses, this is just from what my dancer has shared with me. She says that usually the only adult in the master class is the teacher. Nobody else is watching. She says teachers usually seem to have a few favorite students that they focus on. But otherwise, she enjoys the classes."
"The teachers were really engaged and had great energy. They walked around, watched everyone, and gave corrections throughout the class"
"Master classes were very big and fast pace. Call back class was well organised but master classes allowed dancers to push in front to be seen and were crowded and dificult to dance in"
"Very. Walked around looking at all students"
"When I was competing as a solist, these classes were very intense. Too many girls in the same room. The teacher only looked at and corrected the favourites, so you could already predict who was going to win the big prizes. I remember once, when I was like 12, the class was thaught by Jean Yves Guesquière (director of european school of ballet). He abruptly stopped an exercise and asked me for my name. I answerd and he proceeded to call me a totally different name (Paula) and then asked me to show the exercise. While I was showing him, he stopped me and asked the others to correct me. He ended this public humiliation by telling me to pay more attention to doing the right exercise. People from yagp regularly came into classes to film (of course only the dancers who were ‘worth it’ to be shown). Also after the classes, especially when a lot of the instafamous prodigies all came to Paris, there were fotoshoots for them in the POB building and they were put all over social media. I even remember when the videos of an instafamous girl were posted on youtube, talking about how amazing she was, even before the awards were given out (so you can already assume who was the big winner of the competition). Later, when I only competes as part of an ensemble group, I noticed that a lot less attention went out to us. I felt like we were seen and treated as lesser dancers just because we were not competing as a solist. Our masterclasses often were late at night and often almost no yagp staff was present, only the teachers who were visibly irritated that they had to teach ‘us amateurs’. I even remember when some girls of maybe 9 year old, didn’t know where their classes were so they walked into our class. Mind you this was a class for people older than 14, but nobt said something, not the teacher, not the staff."
"Very engaged. My dancer always comes out with a big smile and loves the energy they bring."
"Walked around the room, some hands on corrections, some had demonstrations done by dancers for group corrections."
"Teachers were engaged walking the room. Contemporary teachers seemed to be especially high energy, making the class fun with their music selections."
"Ballet masters were engaged and very high energy"
"Moved around, very engaged. Excellent classes!"
"They were engaged, but the same teachers have taught at this yagp for multiple years. We would prefer new teachers for more exposure and experiences."
"He didn’t tell me any details, but he did enjoy this one. It was the 3rd YAGP regional he attended and the first 2 showed blatant favoritism and he got zero actual teaching out of them."
"They have always been engaged and quality master classes"
"These were positive classes. The teachers were in front of students and walked around the room There were people with some tablets. They looked at the dancers and marked something. They also took pictures"
"They walked around the room. Seemed To know some of the kids already and those were the favorites and the ones chosen for demonstration."
"The teachers were engaged and walking around the room. Gave general corrections and occasionally singled an individual out. Rooms were crowded and my taller dancer often had trouble with spacing and other students not traveling as much or showing appropriate etiquette in spacing."
"Very engaged."
"Dancer cannot recall"
"This varies across the teachers, one wsd very engaged, the others less so"
"They walked around the room and gave examples. They had very good insight."
"Both teachers were highly engaged. Ms. Bouder in technique walked around giving corrections and explained in detail, which helped me get a better grasp of each concept. Mr. Selya made it a fun, easygoing class where the focus was more on having fun (rather than receiving corrections"

Crowding

Really Crowded





Plenty of Room to Move

Master Class Feedback

Technique

Contemporary

Additional master class comments

Repeated Responses:

"N/a" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"I would have given Contemporary a B if I’d had room to move in the class. It was really cramped for rolling on the floor and for extensions."
"No favoritism. Good corrections and engaged instructors. The issue was with the floor and that it was in a hotel ballroom. That is why we gave 4 not 5. I will say at regionals there was NOBODY observing master classes - not any of my dancer’s anyway. No numbers were worn. No video was being taken of which we were aware. So master classes were simply master classes - not an opportunity to be seen. I will say there were two other yagps that weekend - San Francisco and i forget the other city but one with more appeal than Houston lol. So maybe “scouts” went to those locations instead. I dont believe a single scholarship was awarded at that regional. I could be wrong - if any were given it was few and far between. My basis for comparison is UBC regionals and finals where scouts are present at master classes and where my daughter was awarded a full time yr round scholarship to Rock School arising from UBC master classes, not her variations. But we also view master classes as a way to grow - not every master class needs to be an opportunity to be seen. But we have noticed a marked difference between UBC and YAGP master classes."
"Overall both classes were great since it was a small number of people in the class we got to do a lot of combos. And even go one at a time! Only 15 dancers were in 17 and up at Nashville. But there were 40 plus in every other age group which I found interesting. Although masters classes are optional."
"There was for sure favorites in class, both classes were as expected, the contemporary teacher was more involved with the dancers and had some really fun movements"
"Quality class"
"Kids liked the contemporary class"
"Was pretty tough but detailed"
"Obvious favoritism Better corrections"
"My daughter likes the master classes!"
"Both classes were really good. The teachers were hands-on, gave helpful corrections, and the energy was great. My daughter really enjoyed both"
"Both classes were really good. Good energy, useful corrections, and the teachers kept everyone involved. My dancer enjoyed both."
"Obvious favoritism"
"No individual attention. Too many kids per class. Class started late. Teacher was rude even to parents who were just standing outside. Teacher clearly woke up on the wrong side of the bed and that's the wrong energy to take into a class full of kids who have been dying to meet you. Huge let down. We should have just skipped and gone home. The kids said it was ok but not worth paying an extra night in a hotel. No one was observing from other schools like they say."
"no"
"It is hard to say since I was not observing the class. Sometimes the classes are just the right amount of challenge, and sometimes they are too easy (in the precompetitive division)."
"Both classes were really fun and challenging. The teachers gave helpful corrections and the combinations were great. I learned a lot and really enjoyed both classes."
"obvious favoritism, filming of some dancers was offputting to both my dancer being filmed and others around"
"Held at houston ballet"
"/"
"Classes are always at the end of the competition, and feel like a celebration. The dancers understand that this can be a opportunity to earn scholarships. This helps to maintain a serious tone in class, and the teachers bring good energy. It's a nice balance."
"Masterclasses were enjoyable overall. However, dancer felt there was obvious favoritism amongst dancers that judges knew by name and of specific body types."
"My daughter is always very impressed by masterclasses and takes them very seriously. Generally the classes are tough but interesting and allow her to highlight areas where she might need to work more etc"
"Great combos"
"Rachel nye teaches a good class. Berry Karolis is obnoxious and hyper which makes my dancer not want to attend his classes."
"Obvious favoritism, but he did get some learning in it."
"The teachers did an excellent job providing a valuable and quality class. The downside was when the YAGP director went into the classical master class and had an employee record them. She singled out two of the favorite dancers clearly for videoing to send for scholarships. It was distracting to have the director in there, rearranging the placement of the dancers, clearly showing bias towards a couple of favorites. One of the dancers being filmed was clearly uncomfortable also. "
"Classes were one of the best part of the whole experience and more important than the actual competition to the dancer. We attend Paris because we believe is the best venue in Europe"
"The contemporary was different than my daughter was used to. It wasn’t her favorite."
"There is always obvious favoritism. Those students know who they are and tend to move to the front of the room and have a dialogue with teacher. Numbers are not worn for master classes so there is no identification method unless teacher goes out of way to ask name and school."
"N/A"
"You don’t explain the rating above - am assuming A is best"
"It was not an extremely hard class but it was detail oriented and appreciated."
"Ballet technique was challenging, but Ms. Bouder gave in-depth corrections which were useful. I enjoyed her class. Contemporary felt like it was more focused on having fun dancing since Mr. Selya didn't give many corrections."

Performance Details

Venue name

Repeated Responses:

"University of Houston" (2 responses)
"Tarkington theater" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"Folly Theater in Kansas City"
"Don’t remember"
"Tennessee Performing Arts Center"
"Jaon b Kroc theater"
"UNCSA"
"Concourse Theatre"
"Irving Arts Center"
"Teatre-Auditori Sant Cugat"
"Drama Centre"
"Washington Township High School"
"Indian River High School"
"Edmonds Theatre for the Arts"
"Byham Theater"
"Richard J. Reynolds Memorial Auditorium"
"Concourse Chatswood"
"Théâtre Malreux"
"Hays ISD Performing Arts Center"
"Mustang Thester"
"Lund Auditorium"
"The Tarkington"
"Théâtre André Malraux"
"At a performing arts center in Oklahoma, very nice!!"
"Tarkington"
"Ames center"
" Irvine Barclay"
"Paris, Rueil-Malmaison, Theatre Andre Malraux"
"The Hanover Theater and Conservatory"
"TPAC"
"Center for the performing arts - Tarkington theatre"
"Can’t recall"
"Local high school in Sewell, NJ"
"Theatre Beaulieu"
"Straz"
"Hays CISD Performing Arts Center"

Venue description

"The Folly is a beautiful historic theater! The space is the cramped for both parents and students. The lobby is small and gets crowded to the point people are touching back to back. The theater didn’t have enough space for all parents to watch the award ceremony. The students didn’t have much dressing room or warm-up space."
"Tiny stage but more room to warmup"
"Seating in theater is great. The lobby is small and offers two benches for seating. The restrooms were restricted to one, with one toilet. Dancers often used the one restroom as a changing room. U of H is not in the best part of town. Lots of construction. The parking is far (ish) and expensive ($20 each in and out). They do not allow drop off near the entrance - making this an extremely difficult venue for grandparents or anyone with a disability. I am 55, have lupus and arthritis, and I struggle at this venue. Also, it is held in spring which is a very hot time of year, so the distance you have to walk makes it difficult. There is a college hotel run by Hilton next to the theater. This is nice because it has a restaurant. Pricey but nice to rest between events and to avoid the in/out charges of the parking situation. I feel strongly that U of H is not a user friendly venue for master classes and for families and extremely hard for anyone with any sort of disability."
"Beautiful theatre and with lots of seating and a big lobby space!"
"Seating and lobby were great, old space and no seating in the lobby but it was okay."
"It was a back-up location because of snow. It was a small stage but thankful they were able to find a venue last minute."
"Ample seating in venue for solos. Cramped for groups. Awards at palladium was very nice."
"Lots of seating, dressing room space but relatively small stage"
"Safe area, beautiful theater. Very limited space backstage"
"Plenty of parking, lobby was spacious. Bathrooms large and plentiful, theater was fine."
"Really nice venue overall. The seating was comfortable, the lobby was spacious, and everything was pretty easy to navigate even when it got busy."
"Nice venue, easy to get around. Seating was fine and the lobby had enough space."
"School setting, large auditorium, lobby area was what you’d expect at a high school, limited seating and space in lobby"
"It was in a high school auditorium. This was a huge let down from everyone wanting the big time YAGP experience. Very little dressing room space, essentially a bathroom. Safety protocols were extremely lax with adults going into the dressing rooms who were not appropriately badged to do so. The whole event felt like it was being run by teenagers. There were adults working check in but kids working the auditorium entrance and monitoring the dressing rooms. Doors opened late while many girls with hair and makeup got rained on. Parents were good about making space for dancers under the small bit of awning. Floors were very slippery. One dancer had a costume covered in feather that left feathers all over the stage. No one cleaned it up and it cause many to slip. One even faceplanted while doing a cabrio."
"lots of seating however this time, family and friends were only allowed in the balcony, not the main level"
"I always wonder why they have the second floor closed off. With the entire center section being roped off due to photography/videography/judges seating, seating feels very limited and it is very difficult to get in and out of the auditorium."
"The venue was smaller than usual, but it was comfortable enough and had a really nice, cozy feeling"
"Full theatre with lobby. Some studios on site"
"Terrible. Small lobby, one bathroom with one toilet. Parking is very far. Almost inaccessible for elderly or disabled. Cant even drop off elderly in front of venue. Looooong hot walk. No disabled parking near venue."
"Quite an old building, but ok. Not enough space in the dressingrooms. Not enough dressingrooms to accomodate all the dancers, especially when there were group performances. We had to put our stuff behind a door in a hallway (where there was no passage), but our stuff was taken away by a security guard."
"single story building (or we only use the 1st story) it's a clean and comfortable location. Easy to park. Hotels are not near so it's not walkable."
"Large lobby, plenty of seating, smallish dressing rooms"
"Small. The stage was surprisingly small for such a big competition."
"Nice venue. Great stadium seating, lobby area, and parking. Too many dancers squeezed into small rooms for masterclasses. They even had to shift dancers into other classes/rooms due to capacity."
"The theatre is rather small so it is complicated to sit everyone for the awards ceremony but it is in a part of Paris near Opera and allows for a more calm atmosphere around - I understand the choice, despite space limitations"
"Beautiful stage, seating, clean, well organized, staff was helpful."
"Mid sized theater, nice seating and acoustics, back stage is very small."
"Decent size lobby, but only one entrance and exit could be used so there was constant traffic during dances. Lots of seating."
"Very nice theater. "
"Nice and clean"
"The venue was very nice. A decent size theater with a lobby space where the merchandise was set up."
"Very professional and nice"
"CFtPA has their own Marley they install. Lobby is small if there are lots of tables. Fantastic campus and venue."
"The venue was adequate. Parking around it was limited and very expensive."
"Nice venue with a lot of seating"
"We have been here three times, the theatre is okay, there is a practice space backstage, the floor of the stage is okay. The auditorium can become extremely crowded - one year I complained and left the final round to watch online outside as the venue was clearly in breach of fire safety regs"
"Large hall, beautiful stage, comfortable seating."
"Large lobby, and hallway down the side led off to restrooms, hang-out rooms, stage etc."

Stage description

"We had to select variations that don’t require traveling turns or jumps as the stage is small. The stage did have Marley floor."
"Marley, slippery, TINY STAGE"
"This was a HUGE issue. Marley was bad. Slippery. But more so - they set the stage so small! Many of our older dancers whose choreography included 6 jumps on the diagonal had to modify routines to 3-4 jumps. This was fixable by moving the wings. Our school pointed this out to yagp day 1. They did not adjust. Also, our school offered on day 1 to bring “good” marley and free crew to lay it out - they did not take advantage of that. Also the marley did not extend forward far enough - so dancers could hit wood. My daughter, age 13, with a “simple” classical variation, even had to adjust her turns as she ran out of room - so had to step backwards on the fly to perform jer routine. Yagp’s stage layouy and marley were definitely an issue for our dancers accustomed to training on a full stage. We were disappointed no corrections were made after deficiencies were pointed out and solutions offered. The dancers on day 1 paid the price for this as they figured it out while on stage. Dancers who came day 2-3 were watned and able to change choreography in advance."
"There was Marley and there was plenty of room to jump!"
"The floor was Marley, it was very slippery"
"Slippery floor but stage was large enough to dance."
"Large stage. Marley. Slippery."
"Was Marley, good surface that was not slippery."
"Marley was good"
"Marley. It was slippery and my daughter was terrified of falling."
"The stage was a good size and there was plenty of room to move. The floor felt fine and she didn’t have to change anything in her choreography"
"Stage was good size. Enough room for jumps and moving. Floor was fine, no problem."
"Not raked, Marley was fine, size was fine"
"Stage was large enough. Floor was not sprung. It did have marley of some sort but was extremely slippery."
"marley - good floor, lots of room"
"Unsure"
"There was professional marley and the stage worked well for the competition. It was smaller than a typical YAGP stage, but we were still able to perform normally"
"Marley floor, large enough and well laid"
"Stage was extremely tight. Choreography had to be changed on the fly by dancers esp day 1. Senior dancers who danced days later had to remove jumps bc not enough room. Also quite slippery. Highly recommend yagp changes venues"
"Marley, not raked, the floor was ok, big stage"
"Marley, not raked, sometimes the floor seems slippery. Original choreo fine."
"Marley, not raked, slightly slippery-warned by other dancers and felt during open stage, stage was large enough no changes needed in choreography."
"Marley, slippery, small stage"
"Marley. Floors could get very slippery because some dancers did not follow rules and would apply rosin to their pointe shoes. Staff “overlooked” dancers doing this. Dancers would slip or fall on stage. Stage was big enough for performance but too crowded during open stage."
"I don’t remember this detail - definitely no need for the modifications of the choreography"
"Marley. Good but by end of day had a few slippery spots."
"Slippery Marley, poor floor care. The floor was never swept or mopped between sections even when it was obvious a certain area was slippery. Floor should be cleaned after contemporary sections on my opinion."
"Good quality Marley; lots of dance competitions are held at this venue."
"No problems with the theater"
"Comfortable dressing rooms. A little crowded. Professional ballet floor, big stage, not raked"
"The students practiced with the stage size at the studio beforehand as it was a bit smaller than they were used to. There was Marley and it was a little sticky, but manageable."
"Marley was present, not raked, floor was not slippery or sticky, and there was plenty of room."
"Plenty of space. Traditionally the cftpa Marley is on the slicker side. I was at a meeting for resident companies and new Marley is being purchased. I need to check when this is happening. 2027?"
"Marley. There was enough room for a full pass on stage"
"Marley on stage- practice was shortened due to threat of winter storm."
"I have no idea what marley is (am British - maybe explain this term). There is a very slight rake, floor a bit sticky. Space is okay for perfomance, didn’t need to modify, packed for open stage as usual."
"Marley and plenty of room."
"Marley was NOT raked. The floor was quite slippery, so the pirouettes en pointe in my variation felt scary. They told us we were not allowed to use rosin. The stage had space to travel, so I didn't have to make any modifications."

Off-stage warm-up space

Repeated Responses:

"Fine" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"We had to warm-up at the hotel prior due to lack of space backstage."
"Hallways and another small stage area"
"They had a rehearsal and warm up space close to the dressing rooms with Marley and barres already set out."
"The space was so hot and no airflow for warmups. No space to warm up not the best backstage experience"
"With it being held at UNCSA, there were plenty of dance studios for warming up.."
"Wherever you find a spot"
"There was sufficient space to warm up backstage, hallway or even dressing room"
"Very little space"
"She did not complain about anything with regards to warm up."
"The warm-up space was decent. It got a little crowded at times, but there was still enough room to get ready."
"Warm-up area was okay. A bit busy sometimes but still enough space."
"Hallways on very hard floor, no actual dance spaces"
"no warm up space. Wings were not big, they weren't supposed to be in the hall and the was very little dressing room space."
"fair"
"Dancers just find empty spaces in the hallways to warm up"
"The warm-up space was pretty small and a little crowded, but we were able to make it work"
"Concrete green room with no suitable flooring. Warm up room too far away from the stage to be helpful"
"Like said previously, there was not enough space, only one room with marley where you could practice, but so many people would be there that you actually disn’t have space."
"Lots of room/ dressing rooms open area to warm up"
"Side stage was smaller but dancer had experienced much smaller side stage at performance venues."
"Big schools got their own rooms. My dancer was the only person from her small school and was in a smaller auditorium."
"Dancers would warm up in hallways unless teachers could find a room for them."
"I am not too sure, some dancers were warming up in corridors. But mostly backstage"
"Good, lots of space, a rehearsal room and places to get ready"
"Very tight backstage and dressing rooms. You’re lucky if you can find a corner to warm dancers up. The big studios take the onsite studios for themselves."
"Not much"
"There was adequate space."
"It was cold for the dancer. Enough space for warm-up"
"There wasn’t a lot of warm up space besides a small area on the balcony floor."
"There is a full rehearsal hall and plenty of warm up space off-stage."
"Not good. Hallways mostly. There is a space backstage behind the theatre that isn’t a hallway and it does get claimed by the large “YAGP friendly local studio”"
"Minimal"
"Plenty of room in stage and back stage."
"This space is pretty good, a large studio backstage which can be accessed and used through the competition."
"Studios were used for warm up. Very spacious."
"There were a few large open rooms designated for us to hang out. It served as a place to warm up, do makeup, wait, etc. There was one mirror, and some chairs. It was not a studio."

Dressing rooms

Repeated Responses:

"N/A" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"There were mirrors and lights in the dressing rooms. There wasn’t much space so dancers were stepping on each other’s tutu bags."
"Dressing rooms were assigned by YAGP, very organized"
"Will complete this portion with my dancer"
"They were very crowded"
"Adequate dressing room."
"Dressing rooms were spacious. Males had their own small space but it was an actual room and not a closet as it is a professional theater"
"There were 2 dressing rooms for boys and 4 for the girls. Both large and small. Anyone could pick a room, not allocated"
"Too small for the amount of kids"
"I have a girl so I did not pay attention to the boys."
"The dressing rooms were pretty basic but worked fine. There was enough space to change and get ready"
"Dressing rooms were basic but fine. Enough space to change and get ready."
"I don't have a male dancer so I don't know"
"dressing rooms were small"
"Unsure"
"The dressing rooms were smaller than usual and pretty crowded, but everything worked out."
"Small and crowded, mixed groups and quite a lot of teachers coaching"
"Fine"
"The dressing rooms were mixed, but also appointed by the organisation based on the dance school."
"unsure"
"Smaller but was able to utilize space as dancers moved in and out during their performance times."
"There were no dressing rooms. You were in a small theater with no privacy or mirrors."
"Can’t describe male space. Dressing rooms could get a bit crowded with personal belongings."
"I don’t know"
"Dress rooms had mirrors, space, places to put costumes, good lighting, very organized"
"Small"
"It was a small room behind the stage"
"I actually didn’t notice if they had a dressing room for the males."
"I am not sure if there were male dancers changing rooms"
"They were small and crowded. Dancers were only allowed a small bag with their costume and accessories."
"Not sure"
"Provided"
"Can’t recall"
"No complaints. Adequate"
"Paris gets a variable number of boys, it is not huge but sometimes there aren’t many boys (say 10-15 in total) so for that number it is suitable."
"Dressing rooms were available but crowded. Many people used the lobby to get ready."
"There were no real dressing rooms; we just stay in the hang-out spaces. You need to go to the restroom for privacy to change into costume."

Parents in dressing rooms

Male dressing room

Parents backstage

Onstage warm-up

"Open stage was super crowded due to the small stage. I couldn’t do any extensions or jumps full-out."
"Crowded and overwhelming"
"Fine. Normal. Realized during open stage floor was slippery and wings were waaay too tight and marley didnt extend forward enough"
"We got 30 minutes of open stage time and it was a little crowded but not too bad."
"Open stage was run very smooth, no issues with open stage other than it was crowded. Stage felt smaller."
"Normal experience."
"Congenial but not a lot of space for the guys"
"CROWDED!!!"
"2-3 kids took up majority of space, ran it to kids without caring while others had a tiny space in the corner"
"My daughter likes to warm up independently."
"It was pretty smooth. She had enough time to get a feel for the stage, spacing, and floor before going on"
"It was good. Enough time to feel the stage and floor before dancing."
"Not all teachers follow the rules and they are not re- directed by staff… Some teachers are sharp and highly critical of their dancers, some using clickers to train their dancers, it’s very intense, staff is very friendly to dancers who are well known to YAGP"
"Too many kids and no room. They had to split the girls into tow groups just so you could spready your arms which then cut their open stage to about 2 minutes. Boys (all 5 of them) got dedicated time without anyone on stage to run their variations."
"too crowded"
"N/A"
"The open stage warm-up went well. The stage was smaller than we were used to, but we had enough time to get comfortable with the space before performing."
"Crowded, abrupt and very limited information. Names yelled across the stage"
"Fine"
"Open stage was very hectic. No space to move really. Groups had one minute per dance to practice alone on stage."
"It's a quick open stage, gotta get your most challenging things done quickly"
"Crowded, hard to do a full pass on diagonals and jump/turn series. Expected this based in previous experience."
"It was crowded as the stage was small."
"Each dancer had a small amount of space to practice. Not enough for jumps or substantial movement. Certain areas of floor would get affected by rosin application too."
"Open stage is a bit of a battle field"
"Good"
"Open stage is adequate, her teacher is always in the wings to advise. They get about 10 minutes per group."
"Rushed and very full stage. The stage manager forgot to allow the boys stage time to do across the floor jumps before their variations, which was very disappointing."
"It’s too crowded to practice anything significant from the variation, but it was an opportunity to get a feel for the stage. It was fine."
"Parents are not allowed backstage. As if the dancer was 10, and independent, they let inside a parent to help. For junior category it was not an option."
"Open stage was crowded and she was not able to dance full out-only marking."
"My dancer despises open stage warm up. Favorites often push their way to the front and make room for themselves. It is very crowded and not a lot of room to mark choreography. Definitely not room for full diagonals or big jumps because of the crowd."
"It was fine. Not packed."
"Very crowded"
"Not sure as we went there in person due to weather."
"Open stage is almost useless. You can get a sense of where the lights are, what the floor surface is, the wings, drop at the front but you can’t really get any dancing done and can’t block as there are too many people on stage, some with teachers."
"Very good. Plenty of time to run her solo and test the stage."
"We had several minutes to be on stage (all dancers together who were in the division about to begin)"

Schedule adherence

Other schedule comments

Repeated Responses:

"None" (2 responses)
"No" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"N/A"
"Great. On time, sometimes a bit ahead. Well communicated."
"Nope!"
"Unexpected running ahead of schedule which made me and other dancers feel more stressed"
"Always either very behind or very early"
"It was fine, no complaints!"
"Overall, it ran pretty smoothly. There were a few small shifts here and there, but nothing crazy."
"Mostly on time. Small delays here and there but nothing bad."
"Last minute changes didn't affect us but I feel bad for those it did."
"The competition ran early and we were not notified, so my dancer missed open stage"
"There was a major winter storm and the original theater unexpectedly didn’t open. YAGP had to find another venue basically at the last minute, and somehow they still made the competition happen. The new theater was smaller and not as comfortable as a normal YAGP venue, but honestly I was just really impressed that they pulled it off. Everything still ran well and the smaller space actually made it feel kind of warm and cozy. The YAGP team handled a really difficult situation so well"
"Information only updated via instagram which is very unhelpful, Given the number of posts they were sharing it was difficult to find and if you missed it you'd have to watch dozens of posts to see it again. Often inaccurate"
"It was hard to tell when your dancer would be up because they kept bouncing around number wise."
"I feel that delays or running ahead of the schedule is communicated well"
"Staff was amazing, event ran on time provided updates when needed."
"If you’re not paying attention you could be late. Was supposed to have 2 hours between solo and ensemble and it turned into 30 minutes."
"Some dancers cancelled due to weather."
"The first year when my son competed as a junior there were quite a few clashes between performances and classes, as a senior it is a bit better. The lateness of schedule publication makes planning hard."

Staff communication

Repeated Responses:

"Fine" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"They posted schedule changes to their Instagram as well as sent parents texts if you had signed up for the text updates."
"Very good. A full day was cancelled due to a snowstorm and YAGP successfully rescheduled everything so everyone there could perform"
"Very informative and everything was ran very efficiently!"
"Great"
"Lots of changes because of the weather. Could have communicated better. Posting on social media only is not the best way to communicate."
"Good"
"If I didn't have my teacher with me, I would never have known as I don't have Instagram to see updates"
"Very little"
"No issues"
"Communication was good overall. Updates were clear, and we always knew where we needed to be and when."
"Communication was good. We got the info we needed and things were quite clear."
"Posted on IG"
"The very limited Adult staff were rude and annoyed to answer questions. After check-in the adults left and the only staff was a teenager working the auditorium door."
"i think it was fine"
"I feel like communication is frequently last-minute"
"Communication was really good, especially with everything changing so last minute. The staff kept everyone updated and did their best to keep things organized."
"Gruff and very limited. Staff are quite rude and assume everyone should "know how yagp works""
"Ok but mostly via instagtam"
"Great communication. I love their use of social media to alert when running ahead."
"They communicated with the school who made sure everyone knew if changes and move up of times."
"None."
"I don’t think much communication was necessary as the competition ran on schedule."
"I felt very impressed by the level of interest on behalf of the staff. They seem to really try to match dancers with potential big schools."
"Again, excellent communication, Updates when needed was posted."
"Usually just announced overhead so easy to miss."
"No changes happened"
"We didn’t have any communication with them about changes."
"No communication."
"Unsure"
"They posted any updates to Instagram stories so you had to keep up with any changes there."
"Not really aware of that info."
"Good communication"
"Yes"
"We are used to it now but for anyone new, communication can be confusing, incomplete, last minute and sporadic."
"Good. A text was sent out."
"I went as an individual, so I felt uninformed sometimes. My mom and I had to figure some things out ourselves."

Judging

Judging rubric clarity

Judges' attentiveness

Feedback turnaround

Type of Feedback

Feedback helpfulness

Not Helpful At All





Extremely Helpful

Main takeaway

"It seemed as if the number scoring was completely subjective and random. Would help to understand why judges picked these seemingly random numbers! My dancer did get short feedback that was helpful in preparing for her next regional."
"As expected. No coded language"
"Zero coded language. Very encouraging. Several similar notes between judges which confirmed what areas she needs to work on. I do wish there was more feedback - one gave much more extensive notes than the rest. With two yagps under our belt at age 13 and 12, scores were generally fairly aligned - with the exception of once where one judge scored her remarkably lower (5-6 points) than the others. We wrote that off to personal taste. I do think a microphone system rather than a typing system would be beneficial so judges can keep their heads up more. I would like more comments and more specific tips - but overall happy with the comments."
"Very detailed! Peter Stark was on the panel and gave me a full paragraph of things I need to work for and how I can reach my goals through exercises to do. Other panel members were extremely helpful as well!"
"Pretty basic comments, some judges didn’t leave any comments at all. Most comments were positive"
"Could have received more feedback."
"Inconsistent feedback for girls 3 judges score girl 94 or 95 and one gave an 87 on classical with no feedback as to why that score was so low. Very inconsistent. Good comments and feedback for contemporary with specific corrections to enhance the piece."
"It seemed as though the judges were not fully engaged as I am 12yrs old and danced on pointe performing Harlequinade and the general feedback was that why am I not on my shoe properly and I need to work on my turns, eventhough I completed all turns cleanly and even did a triple. The scoring was consistent amongst 3 judges with low - mid 90's but one judge had a completely different score of more than a 10 point difference which lowered my overall score. This was the same for all students from my school. It seemed odd as the lowest scoring judge (low - mid 80's) had positive feedback which did not match the score given."
"Rarely have comments and if they do it’s the same thing for several other kids we know. No constructive comments."
"The scoring was really high from most judges and then really low from one single other judge. This happens each year with YAGP. The same judge scores her low each time while the others score much higher."
"The feedback was mostly positive and really helpful. It gave her a few clear things to work on in training, which was great. Nothing felt negative or weird."
"Mostly positive and helpful. Gave her some clear things to work on in training."
"None provided"
"Nothing overwhelmingly positive or negative. No coded language. Minimal comments"
"it seemed that some of the judges or staff were biased against our particular school as the words "ballet academy" were not part of the dance school name"
"Each judge provides 1-2 sentences"
"The feedback was really helpful and positive. It gave me a better idea of what I’m doing well and what I still need to work on. I definitely used the corrections in my training after the competition"
"That the scores were either meaningless or changed as they were all exactly the same across all judges and dances performed, even though the comments suggested a better perfomance in one dance vs another"
"Generally similar themes in feedback (areas in which to improve). Overall encouraging. One was lengthy. Others were brief. But scoring seemed fair."
"Dancers who were not exceptional prodigies weren’t even looked at by the judges. They randomly wrote stuff on the sheets if they thought you were not worth their attention. From the audience tou could see them on their phones or talking to each other during performances. The feedback that you did get was not helpfull: a score and a few words."
"The judges at YAGP are incredibly knowledgeable and helpful. Never comments about costumes or things the kids can't control."
"Mostly positive with some helpful constructive comments. No codes language. Seemed like each judge had at least one or more positive comments"
"At first we got someone else’s scores. Then they sent my daughter’s. Most of the comments/scores were exactly the same. Cut and paste."
"My dancer always received really positive feedback. However, never anything specific that would help her achieve a “finals” score. She always seemed to be on the cusp."
"Positive encouragement and specific corrections"
"Good feedback from judges. Scoring seemed fair and aligned with expectations."
"Some judges gave the same scripted feedback to every dancer. One of the competition founders who was judging referred to a dance on one of her score sheet she hadn’t even performed yet (which shows they go back in afterwards to make adjustments). A few gave actual personal feedback."
"Not sure since no feedback yet. Prior year feedback has been very basic and did not include specific corrections."
"Some feedback from particular judges has been helpful and thoughtful. Other comments haven’t been thoughtful. "
"Coded language from some of the judges and some positive words from 1 of them"
"The feedback was brief and unhelpful. It didn’t seem to necessarily support her scores or placement. One of the judge’s comments- “flow was unreal-ATE.” He gave her a 99 for contemporary yet she wasn’t in the top 3."
"Over the years of attending these regionals the feedback has been minimal, but there has not been any coded language."
"It was fair. A little vague."
"Feedback was sparse and inconsistent (focused on different things … no consensus)."
"Dancer only participated in the large group classical ballet performance."
"No coded language, but feedback is generic and pretty useless"
"Positive. Judges were kind and gave helpful feedback on where to improve."
"I received positive feedback as well as things to keep working on. Each of the four judges wrote one or two sentences."

Scoring felt fair

Why Scoring Unfair?

"The scores were very different from one judge to another. Seemed like the judges that weren’t paying attention during the competition had scores that were significantly lower. Also watching judges during competition they had their camera out before the dancer would come on which tells me that they had already known they liked them and were ready to film them. That makes the other performers feel they aren’t good enough right off the bat to be filmed. One thing that really irritates me, there was one judge who got up and left the competition mid performance, another judge came to step in and as we compared score sheets from all the dancers from our school, the performers that performed before the judge left all had scores that were at least 5 points higher than the girls who had the replacement judge and these girls were in the older age division than the girls who had the first judge and were significantly better and should have scored higher. It was a very bad experience and total unfairness for all who competed."
"Would like for them to mimic other competitions with verbal critiques."
"One judge was very opinionated about tutus"
"We noticed that students from Claudia Dean Academy placed very well and 2 days after the competition one of the judges (Robert Parker) was teaching at her Academy. This seems like a conflict of interest. Also it was noted that the judges were on their phone and seemed disinterested. How do they mark, when they are not watching all dancers. It seemed biased towards certain schools. I would be interested in knowing how they judge dancers en pointe vs flat shoes in the same category. Also a dancer with clearly strong technique vs a dancer who is weak, falls out turns and doesn't point feet receives scholarships and higher scores than the stronger dancer who did execute technically well. It seemed like they only looked at dancers who were, skinny, had long legs and arched feet. It didn't matter how they danced, as long as they had the above characteristics or went to a ballet school with a large bank account or instagram following, that's mattered. Dancers were not rewarded for their dancing."
"Same category has different sets of judges. Some judges are know. To score very high and others very low regardless of how the dancer did"
"It didn't feel fair, but to be honest we don't know what the other scores were for other dancers!"
"I watched the judges and they did not look up while my daughter danced… they were not looking at any screens that had her on it… they watched her walk out and then looked down and did not watch her actually dance. They talked to each other at times. While in pre- comp, my daughter placed in top 3 or top 12 each year she competed. Her body changed the same year she was a junior for the first time. She did not place in the top 24 for any of the years she competed as a junior despite competing against the same kids as we often went to the same regionals year after year. She competed at other ballet comps (ADC- IBC, UBC, NBC) and while in pre- comp , she placed about the same across comps. Once she became a junior (also the year she developed breasts and became more muscular), she continued to be in top 12 or higher at the other comps but not at YAGP. I know that the pre- comp category is much smaller than junior category and the competition gets harder as they get older but it was very suspicious."
"Dancers were rushed on, music starting before the last dancer was off, causing several to make it to their place late."
"our school had a small ensemble and 2 duets that finished first overall, and first and second overall. None of these were invited to finals, despite finishing at the top and having high scores. The ensemble that finished in second place (a "ballet academy" whose director was obviously familiar with YAGP leadership) were invited to finals"
"The scores don't really help us know what we need to do in order to improve."
"The final round group selection took several hours to come out after the call-back class, and did not reflect first round performances at all. There was an initial selection shared that was subsequently deleted and replaced, changing some of dancers, The final awards results were announced on stage, and then changed after the event. We were told this was due to judges complaining that "winning" participants were not who the judges had selected, but YAGP just called it a mix up rather than explaining why they had clearly changed the results. The whole thing seemed unethical and left a bad taste"
"I feel like these big famous dancers were all brought here to compete and to yet again win all the big prizes and get all the attention. I honeslt don’t understand why these kids who have already won everything and who are handed every opportunity are allowed to compete yet again."
"Scoring was all over the place. Most high scores and then one low one to bring down the average it felt like."
"The dancer who won 1st place in classical that year was dancing in the wrong category. She was a beloved dancer of YAGP and had been dancing as a year younger all through pre-competitive. That year she won as an 11-year old in pre-competitive but should have been in the junior category. She skipped two years ahead the following year in junior category. YAGP leaders were notified but did not have any intention of investigating the matter. They basically said YAGP is not about winning."
"The score varied wildly. It seems the judges may not have a rubric or much training."
"It was obvious that Larkin and WestMet were favorites - Larkin brought mostly contemporary dances and they received studio of the year."
"There are dancers that are clearly deserving of high scores because they are fantastic dancers. Then there are other dancers who receive higher scores than they should and placement because they come from preferred schools. The school bias at YAGP is very clear in Southern California."
"There were more than 8-10 points difference between some of the judges scores. The lowest was without any comments."
"We have been to YAGP several times over the years and have also closely followed the competition for awhile. I have seen judges visit studios just prior to the competition to clean routines that they will be judging that weekend. That has never felt right to me. I have also watched the judging panel wine and dine certain studios/schools while they are in town for the competition and then watched those schools do very well. I have seen many placements that seem like they had been changed or altered because it didn’t seem to match what we watched on stage."
"My dancer has consistently scored in the low 90s (90-93) but has never been invited as a soloist to Finals or received any type of scholarship. I have no idea if there is a score "cutoff" but always seems like that is the score range we live at. Rumor has always been 95s get invited but not always, but always have wondered if there are other factors at play."
"Scoring is not transparent and scores for my dancer varied wildly (e.g., one score would have been high enough to qualify for finals, another was close and one was much lower)"
"Having now watched a lot of yagps I don’t think it is a genuine competition. It is an important organisation but it does not g around the world finding the best ballet talent."
"Each judge gives a technical score as well as an artistic score. The two are averaged out to make each judge's average score. Then all average scores are averaged to create the total score."

Awards & Scholarships

Awards ceremony

"Well we couldn’t watch the award ceremony because of lack of seating. My student enjoys the award ceremony! She enjoys cheering her friends on and standing on stage with her school."
"Missed it due to schedule changes and flights"
"Having been to four UBCs (2 regionals and 2 finals) the difference is night and day compared to yagp. At UBC there is a level of professionalism and production value that is impressive. It feels like they are putting $ back into the overall experience. YAGP regional awards felt bare bones. I can’t speak to what finals awards feels like. The announcing was awful, they accidentally stated one of our school’s dancers (pas) got first, when in fact they got third, so that was a difficult moment - but human error happens. And the first place pas winners were also from our school - and the same male danced with both - so an understandable mixup- but tough for the girl who thought she’d won first for a moment. In short, and not bc of that mixup, I loathe yagp regionals awards. It feels slapped together, unprofessional, no media - unlike UBC with a video compilation of the week’s event and professional announcing. I LIKE yagp. But i feel they skimp on regional awards, venues, production quality, and awards. My dancer finished top 12 I think - everyone got a certificate except her. They emailed us a pdf after and we printed it at home but I share this only as an example of a lack of attention to detail. They seem understaffed."
"It was very long. They announce top 24 for each category and age! Then introduce the panel and scholarships"
"No parents were allowed in the ceremony which is always annoying."
"It's a formal experience. Sometimes confusing and you can loose track on what is being announced."
"Very celebratory and fun for kids. A little overly interested and invested in some dancers who were clearly favored by Larissa."
"Way too long..."
"Mean girls making rude comments"
"My dancer placed in the top 12"
"The awards ceremony was really nice. It was exciting for the dancers, and the whole thing felt fun and well organized."
"It was nice and exciting. The dancers were happy and the audience was very supportive."
"We were not able to watch awards in person as we were told that the venue was not big enough."
"We skipped it."
"the ceremony was lovely, but there was not space in the theatre for family and friends - they had to watch on zoom"
"Parents were first told that they would not be allowed to be in the auditorium for the awards ceremony due to limited seating, but at the last minute, most parents were able to get in."
"The awards ceremony was really exciting and had such a fun energy. Everyone was cheering for each other, and it felt really special to be there"
"It was quite clear that awards were going to larger school groups (those that had brought many students) and top placings were a line up of the skinniest kids rather than who danced well. It seemed very political and performative"
"Lackluster. Unprofessional - meaning no production value."
"Very long, especially the announcement of all the studios."
"Fast awards ceremony. I appreciate the way they give dancers one last time on stage to take a bow, turn and thank the parents/acknowledge the parents, and then have the larger categories stand at their seats rather than to the the stage. It seems respectful of everyone's time."
"Dance line up vss as charade with school, parents cattle call by doors till they open then rush for seats. No restrictions on number of parents and plenty of room for everyone to sit with s as good view of the stage. Large center front section and some front side rows reserved for students."
"Went into awards knowing one school in particular was said to win and they did. It was pretty obvious that a few schools were the favorites."
"The school introductions can feel a bit long, but they do a good job of moving things along quickly and in an entertaining manner."
"I feel that there is a lof of excitement and it is truly a big moment for dancers and parents."
"Ceremony was around an hour long, parents, teachers, dancers all were at the event. It was organized and live streamed. Dancer had a good experience, placed in both contemporary and classical."
"The awards ceremony is fine- we rarely attend, the same group of dancers win pretty much every year (this is our 6th year doing yagp). Kids come in from Canada and win as well as multiple winners from other regionals who score slightly higher. The same Russian school wins yagp school of the year every year."
"It was short, but included some unnecessary favoritism towards some students -called them by name and made side comments that were too casual, indicating they knew them well."
"Maria Konrad was hosting this awards ceremony. It was a refreshing change from the usual host, who I don’t enjoy. I appreciated the maturity that Maria Konrad brought to hosting. I wish they could either make the ceremony shorter so it’s more tolerable, or make it longer but with actual substance like how ADCIBC does Q and A."
"It was ok. They presented all nations."
"At this particular event the emcee was super obnoxious and it made the awards hard to watch. The overall experience was fine. We have been to awards in the past where the seating wasn’t sufficient to accommodate the parents, so only the dancers and teachers were allowed to be present."
"Long! Parents are not always invited to sit in audience due to space but there is always a video feed on YouTube."
"Held across the street in a large performing arts center. Organized in Indy."
"The award ceremony was painful to watch as the presenter clearly favorited certain dancers (e.g., by using personal nicknames for them and saying “I’ve seen you dancing for many years”. It was unclear if this was related to prior YAGP performances or if they had a teacher/student relationship). This dancer placed highly in both categories so there was a clear appearance of favoritism."
"Not sure as it was all very rushed due to weather. Some of it was streamed on You Tube."
"It is always very late to start, quite chaotic, long and to be honest a bit depressing, as it is almost always the same kids - the ones with large social media followings - who get awarded the scholarshios."
"It was a faster ceremony which was appreciated."
"Students walked out by school for a bow, then entered the audience to sit in the front rows. Top 12 of each division was called up to receive their certificates, and first, second, and third place were announced right after."

Won an award or training offer

Festival offer

Gala offer

Invited to finals

Award or Training Offer Description

"None"
"Don’t remember all the scholarships and cannot describe award since who won what in each season and regional is public knowledge"
"Top 12 or 24 - can’t remember but think top 12. Invitation to Ravenna (italy) - not paid Summer invite to next gen with small scholarship maybe 20% Invitation to another school’s summer program on coast of spain - not paid I will say one thing i do not like abt our former school is they handled registrations - so all yagp communications coming from yagp (scores, scholarships, etc) were routed via our school - and we have reason to believe maybe not all opportunities reached us. But that is a school issue, not a yagp issue: there was some gatekeeping going on possibly. My recommendation would be for parents to register their own children even if that isnt the school’s protocol."
"Oklahoma and Houston summer intensive. ICE summer intensive"
"Top 12 award"
"Top 24 and scholarship for summer intensive and short stay at a ballet company."
"Top 12. Small discount on several ballet schools"
"25 % scholarships to several summer Intensives"
"She received a short stay offer and a full SI scholarship to Ballet West, as well as a 50% scholarship for International Contemporary something in NY. She also received entry and scholarship for Alberta Ballet. She placed top 12 classical and 3rd overall contemporary"
"Prefer not to answer because we don't want to be ID'd. We usually receive a small percentage off a summer program tuition."
"Alberta short term and summer scholarship. US John Cranko Summer scholarship"
"15-25% summer scholarships, invitations to a cpl festivals"
"Colorado Ballet Academy SI partial, Cranko SI partial, ICM"
"Summer scholarship Nevada Ballet, acceptances to John Cranko Summer, International Contemporary Masters, YGP Dance Lab Malta, Vaganova International Program Vegas"
"Acceptance to summer intensive."
"My dancer consistently placed in the top 12 in both categories every year but never received any sort of scholarship offer with YAGP. She received winter or summer break invitations from time to time."
"My daughter received many invitations for short term scholarships. She was genuinely very excited and tried to attend as many as possible. Eg. winter intensive at Princess Grace (Monaco), short term at European School of Ballet (Amsterdam), summer intensive invitation to Italy"
"Top 12 jr classical and contemporary Partial Si scholarships, YAGP event invites, and"
"Scholarship for summer at Next Generation Ballet."
"Top 12 classical and contemporary Summer intensive in MOSA ballet school."
"2 week partial scholarship at the International Contemporary Masters for placing in contemporary."
"Top 12 small ensemble. Top 24 senior classical."
"Summer intensive scholarship (full)"
"He has won quite a few over the past three years (Oslo, Mosa, La Scala, Royal Ballet) but we have never been able to take them up because of cost. We save all year to attend Paris yagp and don’t have funds for any other travel and accommodation."
"Summer scholarship offers"
"Colorado Ballet Academy--summer intensive with 20% tuition scholarship, short stay offer John Cranko Connecticut--summer intensive 3 week program with 10% tuition scholarship, 5 week program with 15% scholarship Vaganova International Program Las Vegas--acceptance Nashville Ballet--summer intensive acceptance"

Festival offer details

"Ravenna in italy - dont remember cost - didnt consider it or look into details as cost and scheduling didnt work for our family"
"Legacy Master in Italy Gala De Danza in London I don't recall the cost, but the event itself wasn't too expensive, the travel was more costly."
"Ravenna and some others - but at full cost"
"Ravenna, acceptance, $850 USD; International Contemporary Ensemble, acceptance, unsure cost"
"My daughter received an invitation to attend the summer intensive with a partial scholarship. She absolutely loved it and would like to go again."
"Ravenna, YGP malta,"
"Malta. She did not attend, so we do not know the cost"
"I don’t remember"

Gala offer details

"YAGP NYC Gala, no cost to participate. Dancer paid for travel."
"He was invited to Nervi, in its last year. The course was free."

Final Comments

Best aspect

"The best aspects are performance experience. My student is at a company-affiliated school so doesn’t get many opportunities to perform aside from Nutcracker and the Spring Show."
"First YAGP was as expected"
"It is so very humbling yet inspiring seeing the talent! My dancer always made connections with new friends. I feel it was fair, diversity of dancers, and my only measuring stick is did she improve through the 1:1 coaching at end vs beginning."
"How well the competition was ran and all of the great feedback I got from the master classes and the competition part of it!"
"It helps my daughter improve in so many ways"
"Quality of dancers. It's the best that's out there."
"Opportunity to prepare and perform."
"Being on stage and the master classes."
"Stage opportunities"
"Performance experience"
"The level of dancing was amazing. It was great to see so many strong dancers from different countries."
"Great atmosphere. Strong dancers. Good experience."
"None… we would not participate if dancer wasn’t in ensembles that were going"
"Seeing my dancer in costume."
"lovely venue, great masterclasses, good onstage experience"
"The best aspects are getting to spend time with friends in a new city, watching all the hard work pay off on stage, making new friends, and watching amazing solos and group numbers from around the country."
"Honestly, the best part was that the competition happened at all. We had a major winter storm, tons of snow, and the original theater didn’t open. YAGP had to find another venue at the very last minute, and they somehow made it happen. I’m really grateful they didn’t just cancel."
"Getting to perform with friends from other countries"
"Seeing the amt of students dedicated to the art. Seeing our dancer’s growth at competition vs at beginning of learning variation"
"It can offer great opportunities for some people."
"YAGP has the best judges - decision-makers who offer excellent comments and scholarships. Love that they sometimes remark about seeing improvement from past. Makes you feel like they know the kids and watch for them."
"Meeting other competitors, figuring out where you are in your training based on competition, performing in multiple pieces including ensembles"
"It was fun for my dancer to perform on stage."
"The opportunity to perform a solo on stage."
"The exerience - the whole process from preparation for the competition to managing energy on the day and showcasing what you have worked on while cheering on your friends."
"Performing and having opportunity to practice a variation and receive critiques on how to improve. Making new friends, seeing old friends and getting to visit a city I have not been to."
"I am also a studio director/owner as well as parent of a 16 yo dancer. The master classes, performance experience and camaraderie of our students is a good aspect of the competition."
"My dancer enjoyed getting to perform."
"The master classes are fantastic and the opportunity to be seen by industry leaders."
"It was in Paris. The classes were held in Paris Opera ballet school with some of the best known teachers."
"The ability to train and perform in ballet."
"Seeing ballet friends and just enjoying watching ballet. The whole process of setting a goal, working towards it, and then the opportunity to perform a solo is itself winning. Because the process will naturally improve your technique and dancing as a whole if you have good training. YAGP, although very expensive for our family, does help my dancer improve. We just have to go into it knowing that winning or being recognized isn't the goal. We are not a favorite dancer, a favorite school, and do not have their predictable "ideal" body type they are known for."
"Made me eligible for the YAGP Nashville job fair."
"Scholarship availability"
"The rehearsal and ability to learn rep with her peers. Received corrections and got to know her school directors."
"Seeing the level your peers are at. The UK is quite behind in ballet training so it is really useful to see the level other dancers are at. The master classes can be good too."
"The experience and getting to see other amazing dancers around the world."
"The opportunity to perform on stage with some audience and a little feedback from the judges on the score sheet."

Worst aspect

"There seems to be favoritism for people they already know."
"Tiny stage"
"Venue, flooring, master classes in hotel, lack of staffing, lack of professionalism in terms of production value esp at awards"
"The stage manager was super strict and stressed some dancers out of small things."
"Its judging is totally biased. I’ve seen it in multiple location and multiple years. They do not go off scores, they go off their favorites."
"Feels like big schools get a lot of awards."
"Favortism towards certain schools that attend upwards of 4 regionals. A certain dancer just has to show up and he will win Grand Prix."
"It felt rigged... and the overall feedback was not very useful or helpful"
"Blatant cheating. Favoritism. Several students caught cheating, lying about their age and organization does nothing even though they are aware."
"All YAGP competitions my daughter has been invited to have felt rigged in one way or another. She consistently places in the top 12 at all regionals, but it feels predictable who will be placed in the top 3 and get invited to finals. Despite amazing performances, she has never been invited to finals, usually because one judge always scores her a full 4-6 points lower than everyone else, lowering her score. That makes it feel rigged, intentionally lowering scores to make those he likes win. The competition blatantly has favorites, and it's clear who those dancers are before the competition even happens. It feels preplanned. And all the favorites are from large schools which is no surprise. The fact my dancer places from a very small, no name school is great, because she is talented! But, her or her classmates talent has never been acknowledged by YAGP. Our first year doing YAGP, I remember a young girl being followed by an entourage of people, taking photos, making a huge scene. I thought that was weird b/c it was like she won the competition before the girls even danced! Fast forward to awards, guess who won!! It's not the young girls fault, she was lovely. But it was very surprising as a new parent to witness this scene. That has persisted through the years."
"The days could get pretty long, with a lot of waiting around."
"Long days. Some waiting around."
"The judges not even pretending to care unless they knew your name or you were a specific size."
"Poorly organized, no one around to answer questions most of the time. Staff seemed like they didn't want to be there. Between the facilities, the staff/organization, and the masterclasses it felt like it wasn't worth the money or the hype."
"the feeling of unfairness to know that our school was excluded from finals invitations because it's called a dance academy (and does other styles as well as ballet). This was communicated to one of our school staff by one of the judges"
"I wish schedules were published much farther in advance than 6-7 days. I wish the awards ceremonies ended a little bit earlier. I wish the judges gave each dancer an equal amount of attention."
"The last-minute venue change made everything a little stressful, and the new theater was smaller and not as comfortable as a normal YAGP venue. But that really wasn’t YAGP’s fault. The weather was crazy and they did the best they could with the situation."
"Awards are sometimes prearranged between yagp, schools and certain students. Students that had been accepted to schools outside of the competition were being "awarded" the same things at the awards ceremony, Including my daughter who has recieved a total of 5 scholarships to a school she had already declined. I suspect a great number of yagp awards are just for show"
"Awards ceremony - they dial it in. Doesnt feel special. Poor venue. They seem to reward acrobatics and cirque du soleil type performances. Extreme poses all over their social media. Contortionists seem highly featured - seems to be getting away from classical ballet. One dancer at our school didnt place at our regionals so attended another regional far away. In a town where their sibling dances professionally. Despite not finishing top 24 or scoring well at second regional was invited to finals. That felt odd but perhaps we don’t understand the mechanics behind it. Another dancer at our school junior year outperformed everyone. Instead they gave grand prix to a graduating senior. Yagp staff talked to our junior and told dancer “next yr will be your yr - this ur it is the other dancer’s since they are graduating and you have more time” this was per the mom and kid. Also, this junior who was skipped over ended up with a pro contract junior yr - and is the sibling of the dancer who fot an invite to finals from the second regional where they didnt score well. So either that family or their school or sibling’s pro company has pull with yagp. Also, a french ballet invited older sibling for summer and the younger less talented one got to go along as well as if a package deal. They seem to be able to pull strings others cant."
"I just remember it as a very intense, toxic and unfair competition where some dancers are put on a pedestole while all the other dancers are looked down upon."
"In central Texas, our closest venue is very early and the next closest is very late. If a Finals invite is your goal, it can require travel for an additional venue."
"Crowded backstage and open stage areas"
"The judges didn’t even watch. It was pretty clear that the winners were predetermined."
"Obvious favortism and lack of integrity as displayed by awarding 1st place to a dancer in the wrong age category and showing no desire to correct."
"The inevitable disapointement of friends that do not reach their goals and above all their parents that seem to be more affected at times."
"Travel cost, lol"
"Dances are allowed to compete in multiple regionals even if they’ve already placed and have been selected for finals. Dancers and studios also come in from other countries. It is obvious that the competition directors are close friends with several of the schools and their directors and their dancers consistently go to finals. It is also concerning that partner schools bring dancers to compete."
"Blatant favoritism"
"The clear bias towards certain schools and dancers is disappointing. Some dancers were able to repeat their variation simply because they are a favorite. Some are recorded more in class because they are a favorite. Some scoring is clearly biased towards particular schools or dancers."
"Notmal"
"Knowing that likely whatever happens may not have any reflection on your dancer or how they performed due to the bias."
"The cost is a lot for our family. There are apparent favorites year after year and the partner schools are definitely shown favoritism. Very competitive and ability levels are very high. If you don't fit that typical European/Russian ballet body style, you will not be noticed, no matter how artistic you are or how great your technique is."
"Nothing teally"
"Clear favoritism, opaque scoring, very little actual feedback on solos"
"Not sure"
"It feels fixed from the start. In the final round my son was asked to dance the lower scoring of his two variations which we didn’t understand."
"It wasn’t bad but can feel long because it’s several days."
"How difficult it was to be competing as an individual (not with a school). This was my first competition, and I had no idea what to expect. I didn't have a teacher or parent backstage with me to help me get ready, but luckily my best friend who was in an older division saved me."

Competition culture

"Very professional staff and judges."
"N/A"
"I didnt get the sense of any culture - just sat in audience. It feels colder than UBC. Cant say exactly why. Ubc has more of a supportive warmth abt it."
"Pretty competitive and stressful overall."
"The culture seems to be biased for one specific type of dancer"
"High prestige."
"Mostly positive. Maria is the absolute best greeter and makes all the kids feel special and loved."
"Staff were alot more friendly compared to last year and made us feel comfortable and welcome. There was an intense feeling of pressure in the air"
"Toxic"
"YAGP always feels stressful and high pressure."
"Very professional but still positive and encouraging. It felt competitive without being too intense."
"Professional but friendly. Not too stressful."
"Intense but not encouraging. Also, we saw a larger number of dancers who were not competitive at all. It was strange. There were 14 year olds not en pointe with very little ballet experience. It felt like a money grab from YAGP. It was a HUGE competition, so many entries. It seemed like there should be a qualifying process."
"An air of importance but didn't deliver on experience."
"meh"
"There is definitely a vibe of favoritism. The dancers who are featured multiples times a day on YAGP's social media tend to be the ones invited to all the special events. With thousands of talented dancers participating, I feel they should make an effort to feature a more diverse array of dancers."
"Really positive and supportive. Even with everything going on, the staff stayed calm and made it still feel exciting and special for the dancers."
"The competition culture of bias, lack of information and care. Crowded classes and meat marketness of the awards ceremony"
"It’s a bit antiseptic. I mean it’s totally fine but i wouldn’t describe it as warm. There is amazing talent present."
"Toxic, intense, favoritism"
"The staff is the absolute best! They are friendly and professional. They work so hard to make sure everyone feels welcome."
"High level expectation of performers"
"It seemed pretty unfair."
"Stereotypical"
"I think that yagp is clearly trying to find talented kids and match them with potential schools - this won’t be everyone as not everyone will go on to be professional. However I feel that the atmosphere is very encouraging and applauds real effort, and motivated dancers to work hard"
"I think inclusive and positive. Like a family!"
"The competition is well organized and the kids are nice to each other."
"They like certain studios and only they will place."
"Serious and professional. "
"Normal"
"They want to set a culture of prestige and notoriety. My dancer has always felt proud to be able to have the opportunity to compete."
"Just seems to be a machine to cattle herd as many kids through their regionals as possible. Nothing very personal at all, unless you're a favorite, or have connections with the officials."
"Indy is the last regional or one of the last last semi finals and it’s full of big schools"
"Intense, unsupportive, heavily focused on promoting (and over promoting) a select few dancers. They seem to value extreme hyper mobility and “tricks” in contemporary versus actual musicality. It feels like the competition is focused on the business of pulling in more money and more dancers rather than contributing to dancers actual growth and development."
"Great, everyone was warm and inclusive."
"Yagp in general has quite an exclusive in-crowd feel. There are those few favoured kids who are loved by yagp, win everything, get the scholarships and go all over their social media. These aren’t always the kids who performed the best. My son was looked up and down and asked his shoe size when talking with yagp staff about vocational schools. This isn’t what ballet is about."
"Very professional."
"Competition seemed somewhat organized."

Attendee culture

Repeated Responses:

"Fine" (2 responses)

Unique Responses:

"We overheard other competitors laughing and making fun of dancers from both backstage and inside the theater."
"N/A"
"Fine. Normal."
"Respectful and encouraging"
"Very accepting and kind and supportive"
"Necessary for social media."
"Friendly competition."
"Very competitive but some supportive"
"So many mean girls, tearing down others"
"Cut throat and stressful."
"People were friendly and supportive. Overall, the vibe was really nice."
"Supportive. Nice parents and dancers"
"Parents walking around and talking during performances. Other competitions had very respectful parents, this had much more of what I'm guessing is a convention feel where people come and go walking in front of you and talking without concern for others watching. There were a small number of schools trying to be intimidating or posturing but most weren't that way."
"attendees were lovely - this was one of the best things - interacting with other dancers etc"
"Most dancers and families are so nice. We have not had a problem with anyone."
"Everyone was really supportive and understanding. People were cheering for each other and just seemed happy that the competition was still happening."
"Very competitive between school groups and students. Not friendly"
"Intense, competitive"
"The kids all love to cheer each other on and make new friends from other studios. It's a great balance of competitiveness and camaraderie."
"Friendly, talked with many competitors"
"The parents were intense. Many dancers seemed stressed/were getting yelled at."
"Most attendees keep to their associated schools. Not much else to say."
"There is a high concentration of talent and as such it will be intimidating at times, however, I have never heard of any disrespect."
"We had friends there and made new ones, so very positive and fun!"
"As teachers we keep it friendly and encouraging backstage."
"Most were comp studio parents so they didn’t know ballet competition etiquette."
"Serious and professional."
"Normal"
"This varies widely from city to city. Sometimes it has felt classy and prestigious and sometimes it feels more like a regular competition dance environment."
"It's very tense and not a lot of fun. Lots of intense dance parents and teachers putting unnecessary pressure on kids to perform. Because of social media and all these young kids having IG accounts, they know who surrounds them and relate them to their "highlight reels"."
"Same as above."
"Generally the vibe at YAGP is more competitive (in a negative way) than at other competitions (eg ADCIBC, UBC). Some dancers were participating in their 2nd, 3rd, or even 4th YAGP Semi final of the year!"
"Nothing unusual….nice students"
"On the whole the kids are quite nice, some can be very competitive. I think it is much easier being a boy."
"Professional."
"Not cold but not super friendly and warm either. I feel like others mostly stuck with their schools. However, I did meet some friendly people, and one girl's older sister kindly helped me do the hooks on my costume since I was alone."

Suggested changes

"A clear rubric for scoring instead of random subjective numbers. I clear path to finals and galas."
"N/A"
"Better venue Better flooring Full stage so choreography doesn't need to be changed Better/ easier access for elderly Observed master classes at regionals More scholarships at regionals DO NOT SCHEDULE MULTIPLE YAGPS SAME WEEKEND - this diluted our experience The Houston yagp has many many many Asian ensemble entries under contemporary. These are 100% cultural dances. They are GORGEOUS. But absolutely 100% need their own category. I feel it’s extremely unfair to true contemporary ensembles."
"I wouldn’t change anything!"
"Judging based off technique in master classes and awards going to scores vs favorites. Also please seperate the men from the women’s awards. Two totally different and shouldn’t be competing or compared to each other"
"Students competing at more than one regional."
"Incorporate class into the score to make it more holistic. Stop making 9 and 10 year olds social media stars so early on. Certain dancers are constantly featured. What will happen to their mental health when they hit a growth spurt, burn out, or just don’t end up being the star they were expected to be at 9?!?!"
"To just be fair and judge without bias towards schools or body types. Judge the performance right there and then..."
"Fairness"
"Let every dancer have a chance! Acknowledge more than a few select favorites. Acknowledge other dancers that aren't extremely hypermobile, painfully thin or suuuuper tall with long limbs. There are so many amazing dancers that YAGP ignores to focus on a few of their favorites. Ballet is evolving to be more inclusive and YAGP should be supporting that. They should be encouraging healthy dancers."
"A little more detailed feedback from the judges would be great."
"Would be nice to have more detailed feedback from judges."
"Make masterclasses more valued"
"Cap entry. Better faculties that are made for dancing. The parents pay a lot of money but are treated poorly by staff."
"Stop the favouritism and bias for big schools and where they have relationships"
"1. Finalize and share competition schedules at least a few weeks in advance. 2. Encourage the photographers to please pay attention to the pictures they are taking (many times it seems as if they are pressing the shutter without even looking) 3. If the competition receives constructive criticism, evaluate how to make the program better instead of pretending like there are no issues."
"Nothing major. Considering what happened with the weather and the venue, I think they handled everything really well."
"To actually do what they say they do.. it's either a fairly run competition or it's not"
"Better venue in houston. Sharing the rubric well BEFORE competition with participants. Never saw it until received our scores. Invest more in production values of regional awards ceremonies. Do not allow same participants to enroll in multiple regionals - everyone gets one shot. Explain how a dancer who did not do well at two regionals got invited to finals. Also i think enrollment shoukd be handled by parents not schools on the whole. Our school sent out everyone’s scores to all families and i think those should be private. Maybe allow schools to handle enrollment and music submission but require parent email for purposes of sending scores and scholarships and invitations out. Schools are NOT incentivized to have their dancers receive acceptances and scholarships and I have a fear some schools hold onto those for fear of losing students. I would very much like to see yagp move to headphones that take notes bc the judges’ heads are down half the time writing. They definitely are as attentive as possible - but there is room for improvement in this area I feel. Ensure venues are friendly and accessible for grandparents/elderly/disabled. Ensure they are in a safe part of town. I would like there not to be multiple regionals being held across US on same weekend. I wish master classes at regionals were actually observed. Ours were not. I wish scores were announced almost immediately after like UBC does. Maybe not the score itself but the range (eg platinum, high gold, gold, etc) and there MUST be a separate category at regionals for all the cultural ensembles. Also many of the ensembles throw in younger dancers to offset the average age - i think all members of ensemble should be within same age category (junior, senior, etc) - or find another system for determining avg age. Also, it appeared some dancers in certain ensembles were well above competition age so I’m unsure how yagp can check for that… unsure if we want to get into checking birth certificates in dance but some dancers absolutely raised a few eyebrows. I don’t blame yagp for this. Despite all these comments, i think overall they do a good job and we will continue to compete with them. Zero pressure re weight or any other coded language from anyone at yagp and scoring for our dancer was fair in our estimation. Our dancer fyi usually makes top 12 or 24. Never 1, 2, 3. I have heard people complain yagp is a money grab. I feel like it is the schools that are incentivized to make money by yagp. Our school used to invite only top 5-6 dancers to compete. Now they bring 20+. One dancer who performed 2 classical, 1 contemporary and 1 pas spent $40k on yagp 1:1 training/costume rentals from school. So the registration fees I feel are fine. It’s what *some* schools are charging for training. Schools are incentivized to profit off competitions, esp when their enrollments start lagging at studio. I do love that yagp has no barriers to entry- a great equalizer. However I do wonder if maybe there shouldnt be some sort of screening. I think the competitions have grown too large. Which is why i also think participants should be limited to one regional event."
"Give all dancers opportunities"
"It would be great of competition days ended earlier in the evening, or if they are going to go late, start with a different age category in the morning."
"Maybe split open stage into two groups."
"Better venue. Fair judging."
"I would love to see YAGP become a truly honest competition that doesn’t show favoritism or adhere to ballet body stereotypes. My daughter matured physically faster/more than peers and honestly felt this was held against her. There was cheating taking place but the leaders didn’t care. Winners were known by name in masterclasses and given special treatment. My dancer placed at every competition but never received any scholarship offers. Isn’t that the point?"
"I guess an extra warm up studio that schools could use or book would be great."
"Change Age groups: 9-12 ( perform on flat), age 13-15 yr (must be on pointe), 16-20 yrs. (must be on pointe). Need to be apples to apples."
"Figure out a way to offer scholarships and opportunities for dancers who are ready to move into the prepro or pro levels and not just reward the dancers who are already at that level and already training in the best programs nationally or internationally."
"Stop blatant favortism"
"Founders or employees of YAGP should not be a judge, or even sitting at the judges table."
"Free tickets for parents"
"I definitely think the judges at an event should not be allowed to visit prior to the competition to clean the dances. This seems like an unfair advantage and bias that could easily be eliminated."
"- I think lowering the beginning age to 8 is a mistake. - I think the age groupings isn't fair. There is a big difference in a fresh 8/9yo and a 12 year old competing as a 11yo. I'd like the groupings to be: 9-10, 11-13, 14-16, 17-19 so four age groups instead of three. - I'd like them to wear numbers in the master classes so they can easily be identified. - The master classes should have smaller numbers so they are always so crowded. - I'd be nice to see more individual feedback on score sheets and a audio recording that was taken during performance would be even better! - I wish there was a more holistic approach, including the dancer's classwork in their score."
"More warm up space."
"More judge feedback required for each dancer. More transparency in scoring (e.g., publishing scores of those who place, real time scoring). Scoring rubrics to allow more consistency across judges. Limiting dancers to participation in one semifinal per year."
"Extend the age and keep it instead of switching the age eligibility."
"I think it should decide if it is actually about ballet (and in which case needs to overhaul its judging) or whether it is a PR vehicle for young rich dancers, in which case it can probably just stay as it is, but parents and teachers and most importantly ballet students need to know this so they don’t think their future is doomed if they don’t place."
"I would like to see more master classes and to incorporate scoring from these classes. It could show actual technique and not just a solo that was practiced for months."
"Make things more clear, especially to individual participants--some things I didn't know of since I was an individual."

Cost vs. expectation

Significantly More




Significantly Less

Time worth it

Not Worth It





Worth Every Minute

Overall rating

Anything else?

"This competition is a great experience if you look at it as an addition to your training. My dancer loves preparing for the competitions as much as she loves performing at them!"
"N/A"
"Go into it with the only measuring stick being did my dancer improve from the 1:1 coaching from beginning of training vs yagp performance Register your dancer yourself even if dancing with a school (as opposed to an independent) so that all feedback/comms from yagp and scholarships reach you directly. Dont take it too seriously. Have fun! Do NOT pressure your child. Make sure your dancer is still taking classes, performing productions in a company, and getting a well rounded dance education - do not be a family that trains ONLY for yagp the same variation over and over. That is chasing trophies and misses the point entirely of becoming a professional ballerina who needs the skills of picking up new choreography quickly and blending into a corps."
"Nope!"
"It’s hard to know if it’s the right thing to be involved in. I’d love for parents to be aware of the unfair system based towards social media favorites and I’m not sure it’s worth it."
"Don't trust all of the hype on social media. It's just a competition at the end of the day."
"It is very expensive and only a few favored soloists will get invited to finals. It is aThey are usually pre determined, so if your dancer doesn’t place, this isn’t a failure!"
"Its fantastic for stage practice, opportunities for scholarships but it does have a very "political" feel to it. I would still attend this competition but knowing that no matter the hard work I put in, I will never be acknowledged for it as I don't have the arched feet and hypertened legs, so I will do it for the stage practice and to learn how to deal with nerves. To be honest I had a lot of feedback from external people mentioning I was cheated and I worked for more than 50hrs preparing my variations and genuinely danced well, but it seemed like no one watched or respected the hours of hard work I put in with my teacher and by myself."
"Not worth the money, time or stress"
"YAGP is a huge business that hand picks favorites before the competition takes place. Go in knowing that. It will not be fair and it will be perfectly clear the type of dancer they are looking for. Despite that, people from outside YAGP are watching and those folks do give offers, invites to events, etc. So it's not totally worthless."
"Be ready for some long days, but overall it was a really good experience and definitely worth it."
"We are really happy YAGP came to Singapore. It is still quite new here and it gives our kids such a good opportunity. My child is always so happy after the competition and very inspired. Even when she did not win anything, we were still happy just to be part of it. For us it is not only about awards. It is about growing, learning, seeing other dancers and getting more motivation. We are joining again this year and hope to keep coming. We are really thankful for this experience. Honestly, I wish YAGP Singapore could happen twice a year!"
"Competition prep may be more valuable than the actual competition, esp for YAGP."
"Mybe the experience is location specific but I would caution everyone that it's not like what they portray on social media. It didn't feel special or prestigious in any way. Everyone talks up the master classes but they felt pointless especially since they were crammed to tight and they weren't being observed by schools."
"it is not an even playing field. There are biases and favourites"
"Don't go for the awards or scholarships because those are few and far in between. Make fun plans to explore the area when you are not competing. Encourage your dancer to say hello to new people and work on their people skills."
"I’m honestly just really grateful to YAGP for making this competition happen. We had a major winter storm in North Carolina with a lot of snow, and the original theater didn’t open. Canceling would have been completely understandable and it wouldn’t have been YAGP’s fault at all. Instead, the team found another theater at the last minute and still gave all of us the chance to perform. The venue wasn’t as big or comfortable as usual, but that really didn’t matter. They made it work, and it actually ended up feeling really warm and special. I’ll always be grateful that they didn’t give up and cancel on us."
"Your time and money is better spent in good training"
"Have fun. Soak it in. Look at scoring rubric at beginning of season if possible. Focus should be on progress your dancer made in preparing for yagp. It’s a tough competition. I wish we’d waited until our dancer was 13-14 before competing."
"/"
"YAGP is competitive. It's the best of the best, and competitors must bring their best if they want to place. Strong classical technique is rewarded."
"Go in with no expectations other than gaining performance experience, and learning from the master classes."
"If you’re not with the school that typically wins that regional it’s best to save your money if placement is important to you."
"I think the opportunity to perform a solo on stage and receive feedback is wonderful at any competition. Especially since many dancers never receive that opportunity at their home studios. Outside of that, I think it’s only worth it for a select few. My dancer who placed at every YAGP competition for years never actually received a scholarship offer, was never invited to finals, never felt seen in masterclasses, and witnessed a cheater win. I would say the value wasn’t there for us. We had much better experiences at other competitions."
"I feel that you need to go in for the experience and understand that inherently any judging will be a little subjective - it is arts afterall not athletics. Results will depen on so many aspects - is the variation choice a good one for your dancer, does it showcase his/her strengths etc"
"You need to go in with aligned expectations and focus on having fun."
"We do not expect to win and only go for the experience so for our dancers it is a good option, but it is obvious that only specific dancers and schools will go to finals."
"Don’t go if you want to have a chance at placing, unless your dancer attends a partner school like Larkin."
"If you go to a studio who doesn’t have connections, you’re better off going to a different competition."
"No"
"If you are doing it for the training /experience and do not have set expectations, it may be worthwhile."
"The process of preparing for the competition is the real prize. There will be growth in that process so never go expecting to be recognized on stage or to be awarded a scholarship. If you see worth in that, sign up and attend, but if your school has performances and students are given opportunities to perform and receive feedback elsewhere with out the expense of traveling and attending a competition, then I'd strongly consider not attending."
"Covered it."
"In general, YAGP as an organization needs more accountability and transparency to address ongoing and well publicized allegations of favoritism. We no longer participate in this competition as a result of our experience and that of other dancers we know."
"I think it’s invaluable to donut once as a solo, Pas, and or group dance."
"Learning and preparing variations is a really important and enjoyable part of a dancer’s training and this is a huge benefit of taking part."
"Great experience. Shouldn’t take these things too seriously. It’s a wonderful experience and opportunity for dancers to be recognized and receive scholarship opportunities."
"YAGP mostly judged based on your performance on stage--there is no class where competitors are given scores, it's just your variation etc."