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How to Run Dance Tryouts and Auditions

A dance audition is a performance in front of strangers, and for many dancers it is the first one. Dancers arrive with very different training, the session has to show a teacher who can do what without asking anyone to try something new, and at the end the teachers place dancers in classes, pieces and formations as well as ranking a group. This is a ninety-minute run of show that keeps every dancer moving, keeps everyone at what they already do, and keeps every evaluator looking at something.

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90minute session plan

7tryout stations

5styles scored

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A 90-minute dance audition, minute by minute

This is the shape most programs settle on for a group of twelve to thirty dancers. The numbers are a guide: shorten the stations for a younger group, and skip any station your program does not run. Run it in a room and on a floor your program and its governing body allow.

Time	What happens	Who runs it
0:00 to 0:10	Check-in, numbers, forms confirmed, and a word on what is about to happen: nobody is asked to do anything they do not already do.	Registrar and the lead teacher
0:10 to 0:25	A warm-up and stretch suited to the age group, led by a teacher, all together. Each dancer stays within their own range.	Lead teacher
0:25 to 0:40	Technique at the barre or across the floor, in the style being auditioned, in small groups on the same counts.	One teacher and one evaluator per group
0:40 to 0:52	A turn sequence and then a leap sequence across the floor, in groups of four to six, a set number of tries each, after the warm-up.	One teacher and one evaluator per group
0:52 to 1:12	A short combination of about thirty-two counts, taught to everyone with the music, then performed in small groups three times, with the lines rotated. Scored on the second and third passes.	One teacher and every evaluator
1:12 to 1:22	A short solo or freestyle, or a group formation exercise with changes of formation. Optional unless your program requires it.	Every evaluator
1:22 to 1:30	A cool-down, water, thank you, and exactly what happens next and when families will hear.	Lead teacher

The seven dance stations, and how to run each

These are the stations the scorecard builder can add to the sheet, in the order they usually run. Delete the ones you are not running: a station on the sheet that never happened leaves a blank that looks like a missing score.

Warm-up and stretch. Lead a warm-up and stretch for everyone together, suited to the age group, finishing with the muscles the session will use. Each dancer stretches within their own range. Nobody touches or presses a dancer into a stretch, and no one is asked to show a split or any other extreme position. What to score: Warm-up: focus, listening and how the dancer works in a group. Usually noted rather than scored, and a good time to notice who is holding back from pain.
Technique. Barre work or technique across the floor, in the style being auditioned, in small groups on the same counts. Ask for the exercises every dancer at this level does in class, and give each dancer the same number of passes. A hip hop or tap audition does the equivalent, such as grooves, isolations or rhythm patterns. What to score: Technique: posture, alignment, placement, control and clean lines, within the style being auditioned.
Turn sequence. A turn sequence across the floor, in groups of four to six with room to travel, a set number of tries each, after a warm-up. Ask for the turns the dancer does now, at the number of rotations they normally do, and never for more. Stagger the groups so nobody turns into another dancer. What to score: Turns: preparation, focus, balance and a controlled finish. Record clean finishes, not the number of rotations.
Leap sequence. A leap sequence across the floor, after the turns, in the same small groups, a set number of tries each. Ask for the leaps the dancer does now. Watch the preparation and the landing as closely as the height, and stop any dancer who is tired or unsure. What to score: Leaps: preparation, shape in the air and a quiet, controlled landing, not the distance alone.
Combination. Teach a short combination of about thirty-two counts to everyone, with the music and the counts, then perform it in small groups three times. Score the second and third passes, since the first shows who has seen the choreography before. Rotate the lines so every dancer is at the front for one pass, and give one correction after the second pass to see who applies it. What to score: Combination: how much a dancer keeps by the second pass, how it is performed, and whether they apply the correction on the third. Record the counts correct on each pass in the table below.
Solo or freestyle. Optional unless your program requires it, and said so in the announcement. Give each dancer thirty seconds to a minute to dance something of their own or a given freestyle to music, in front of the evaluators or the group, whichever your program chooses. A dancer who would rather not can skip it, and the cell stays blank. What to score: Solo or freestyle: musicality, commitment and individual voice. Leave the cell blank for a dancer who skipped it.
Group work. Put dancers in small groups and ask them to perform a short combination or a simple pattern in changing formations, with the transitions between them. Watch the spacing, the awareness of the others in the group and how they recover when the formation shifts. What to score: Group work: spacing, awareness of the group, and focus through the formation changes.

Keeping a dance audition safe

This is not the part of the session to improvise. The rules that cover it belong to your program, its governing body, your school or venue and your insurer, and they change, so treat the list below as questions to answer before the day, not as instructions.

The floor. Is it suitable for the work you plan, with the give your teachers expect, clean, dry and free of tape residue or loose boards? Tap shoes and hard surfaces need a check before anyone dances, and a floor that is not suitable means those stations do not run.
Warm-up and stretching. A warm-up suited to the age group before anything athletic. Dancers stretch within their own range, and nobody, evaluator or dancer, presses anyone into a stretch. No dancer is asked for a split or any extreme position.
No new skills. Ask dancers to show what they already do. Never ask for a turn, a leap, a trick or pointe work a dancer has not done before, and never let a dancer talk themselves into one.
Qualified teachers. Who is trained or certified to run any acrobatics, partnering or pointe work you plan to include, and who will be in the room? Anyone who is not qualified does not run, spot or demonstrate it. Many programs leave these out of an audition altogether.
Space. How many dancers can travel across the room at once without hitting each other? Stagger the groups so nobody turns or leaps into someone.
Heat and breaks. Water at every change of station, and a plan for a warm room with a lot of people in it.
Who is in the room. Many programs follow a rule that no adult is alone with a child, and it matters most for changing areas and one-to-one solos. Decide yours, and say it to families beforehand.
An emergency plan. A written plan with the address of the building, the nearest phone and the person who will make the call, and a first-aid kit and ice in the room before the first dancer arrives. Know who is trained to recognize a suspected head injury and what your program, school and state require.

How many people you need

The usual way to wreck an audition is to run it with too few evaluators and ask each to watch everything. A workable plan, by turnout:

Dancers	Evaluators	Helpers	Notes
Up to 16	3	1 registrar, 1 music and counts	One evaluator per station group. The lead teacher teaches and also watches.
17 to 30	4 or 5	1 registrar, 1 music and counts, 1 helper	Add a teacher for the combination. This is the size most sessions are.
31 to 48	6 or more	As above, plus a floor helper	Split by age group or level into two rooms, or run two sessions. One room and one teacher cannot give forty dancers a fair look.

Two evaluators on every station is better than one, scoring independently, and impossible for most volunteer programs. If you can only double up on one thing, double up on the combination, where opinions differ the most.

Dance audition checklist

Most audition problems start before the first dancer arrives. Pack and set up from this list the evening before, so the evening goes on watching dancers.

Paperwork. A sign-in sheet, each dancer's registration and medical consent, one scoring sheet per evaluator with spares, and clipboards and pens.
Numbers. Numbered stickers or bibs that do not hide the body, and a master list of numbers to names that only the registrar holds.
The room. A clean, clear floor checked before anyone arrives, and room along the sides for waiting dancers and their bags.
Music and counts. A speaker, music for the combination at a steady tempo, and a person who calls the counts, so every group works to the same beat.
The material. A short combination written out with its counts, a turn sequence, a leap sequence and a formation exercise, so every dancer is taught the same thing the same way.
Station assignments. Which group starts where, written on a sheet where everyone can see it, so the first rotation does not begin with twenty dancers asking where to go.
The people. Which teachers and evaluators are coming, confirmed in advance, with anyone who will run acrobatics, partnering or pointe work qualified for it under your program's rules.
Grouping and placement. How dancers will be grouped for the stations and the combination, and who decides placements and casting afterward, written down before the first dancer is scored.
First aid and water. A first-aid kit, ice, water for everyone, and the plan for an injury written down with a phone that works.
Afterward. A way to collect every scoring sheet before anyone leaves, and a short message ready that says when and how families will hear.

Placing and casting dancers after the audition

A dance audition does not only rank a group. It places dancers in classes, companies, pieces and formations, and that is a different judgment from a rank.

Place for what the class or piece needs. A piece needs dancers who can hold a line together, a class needs dancers who will learn from each other, and neither needs the same dancer in the same place.
Watch dancers work together. A formation is about spacing, timing and awareness of the group, and that only shows with a group. Use the group work in the session, and rotate the groups.
Decide on the dancing. Never on size or appearance, and never on what a dancer's family has said they want. A front row is not a prize, and a back row is not a verdict.
Tell families what the placement is, and what comes next. A placement at an audition is a starting point, and a dancer can move as they grow and as skills are cleared.
Keep readiness with the teacher. Being placed in a class or a piece is not clearance for pointe, partnering, lifts or acrobatic skills, and the dancer only attempts what a teacher has cleared.

Mistakes that make dance audition scores wrong

Scoring the body. A judgment about weight, shape or appearance is not a score and it is not fair. Score what the dancer does.
Confusing flexibility with ability. Flexibility is trainable, and a dancer should not be marked down for a range they have not had the chance to build. Note the potential.
Remembering the front row. The dancer in the back row did the same combination. Rotate the lines and score every dancer from the same place.
Judging one style by another. A hip hop groove scored against a ballet line, or a contemporary release scored against a jazz sharpness, is the wrong ruler. Score each dancer in the style they are auditioning for.
Rewarding the dancer who has seen it before. The first pass shows who has seen the choreography already. Score the second and third.
Letting turns and leaps outweigh everything. Tricks are one part of dance. A company needs retention, musicality and performance as much as it needs a leap.
Judging only the best moment. An audition is one evening. Watch how a dancer handles a correction as closely as the highlight.
Rewarding the early developer. In any age group the oldest dancers are almost a year older than the youngest. Check the birth date on the sheet before you decide a dancer looks behind.

After the audition

Average the independent sheets before anyone discusses a name, tell families privately and before the casting goes up, and keep the sheets until any appeal window has closed. The longer version, which applies to every sport, is the general tryouts and evaluation guide.

Once the classes and pieces exist, the paperwork is the registration form, the code of conduct and the costume and equipment checkout, with the costume fittings well before the first performance.

Other sports, and the general version

This is the dance version. The general tryouts & evaluation works for any sport, and the dance forms and templates page lists the other 5 dance documents.

Playbook Logix provides customizable templates for informational and administrative use. They are not legal advice and will not meet the requirements of every organization, sport or jurisdiction. Review anything you intend to rely on with your own attorney or your insurance carrier, and check your league and state requirements.

Common questions about dance tryouts

How long should a dance audition be?

Ninety minutes is a sensible target for one age group of twelve to thirty dancers. Less than an hour does not leave enough time to teach a combination and then watch it three times, and more than two hours is scoring fatigue, not skill. If you need a second session, score both and average them rather than treating the second as a tiebreak.

What should a dance audition include?

Seven stations cover what a teacher scores: a warm-up and stretch, technique at the barre or across the floor, a turn sequence, a leap sequence, a combination taught and performed, a solo or freestyle, and group formation work. Keep each one simple enough that a nervous eight-year-old understands it from one demonstration, and skip any station your program does not run.

What is the difference between a tryout, an audition and a placement evaluation?

A tryout or audition chooses dancers for a team or company with a limited number of places. A placement evaluation puts every dancer in the right level of class and nobody is cut. The session looks the same, and what changes is what you tell families beforehand and what you do with the scores.

What should dancers wear to an audition?

Clothing they can move in, that lets you see how they move, with the shoes for the style being auditioned and hair off the face. Say so in the announcement, accept what a family can reasonably get, and do not make the audition about a leotard or a brand.

How do you run a dance audition with lots of dancers?

Teach the warm-up, the combination and the formation to everyone at once, then watch in small groups. Rotate the lines so every dancer is at the front for one pass: the dancer in the back row is the one who gets forgotten. Split the turns and leaps by group, with room to travel.

How do you place dancers after an audition?

The teachers decide on what each class or piece needs, after watching the dancers work together. Look at technique, retention, performance and how a dancer takes a correction, never at size or appearance, and tell families what the placement is and that it can change as a dancer grows.

More dance tools

The rest of the dance toolkit

Dance Registration Form

Styles studied, training and level, dancewear and shoe sizes, and injury questions, on a form for sign-up night.

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Dance Code of Conduct

Dress code, stretching, advanced-skill and injury rules for dancers, and filming, casting and backstage rules for parents, on one page with one signature.

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Dance Tryout Evaluation Form

A scoring grid for technique, turns, leaps, musicality, retention and performance, with a table for how much of the combination each dancer keeps.

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Dance Student Evaluation Form

A mid-year report for a parent: dance skills against the age group, a section for each style, and room for words.

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Dance Costume & Equipment Checkout

Costume, headpiece, props and team jacket, with costume number, size, condition and replacement cost, and a return date.

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Help Center

After the tryout

How to divide players into teamsBy age, by evaluation, by school or by draft, and what each one costs you.Read guide Draft players onto teamsWhere drafting actually happens, how to move a player, and who is still undrafted.Read guide

See all guides in Teams and rosters

Playbook Logix

What happens after the dance tryout

Playbook Logix is registration, rosters, payments, schedules and team messaging for youth and adult sports, in one place. The scorecard decides who plays where. Playbook Logix takes over once the teams exist, and it can handle the sign-ups before them.

Take sign-ups for the tryout

Open the tryout as its own program with a birth-date window and a cap on spots, collect the fee if you charge one, and have every family give you the same information before they arrive.

How it works

Build the teams from one pool

Registered players land in a single pool and you place them on teams afterward, so the rosters you build from your scorecard are the ones families see. A roster can hold players, coaches, managers and volunteers.

How it works

Tell families what happens next

Post the results and next steps on the team message board, with an Acknowledge button to see who has read them. Email and text blasts for anything that cannot wait are on the paid plans.

How it works

The Starter plan is free, and the iPhone and Android app is free on every plan. Anything described above as Coach plan and above needs a paid plan. See the plans or the mobile app.

After the tryout comes the roster

Playbook Logix takes the part that starts once the team exists: registration, medical forms parents fill in on their phone, who has paid, and a roster that is the same in everyone's pocket. There is a free plan.

Start free See how rosters work