Australian Irish Dancing Association Inc.

www.aidainc.com

2012 Australian Irish Dancing Championships

Tuesday September 25th to Sunday September 30th 2012

2012 SYLLABUS

www.feisentry.com

Adjudicators

Danny Doherty England Kathleen Maguire-O’Shea England

Eugene Harnett Ireland James McCutcheon Scotland

Owen McAuley Scotland Teresa Kinsella England

Musicians

Sean O’Brien England Paul O’Donnell Northern Ireland

Anthony Davis England Liam O’Sullivan England

Lodgement of any entry shall be taken to signify that the teacher, parent or guardian and pupil concerned
accept all the Rules of this Championship in full and agree to strictly abide by them at all times.

+ General Rules of the Championships

These Championships are conducted under the Rules and Regulations of An Coimisiun, Dublin, and the Australian Irish Dancing Association Inc. (AIDA Inc.)

RULES

1) In order for entries to be accepted teachers must note that all Competitors:

a. must be pupils of teachers who at the date of entry are registered with An Coimisiun for the year 2012-2013, and who are financial members of AIDA Inc. for 2012.

b. must not on the date(s) of their competitions(s) be ineligible to compete due to any rule.

c. must have been formally entered and have had their entry fees paid in full in due time in accordance with these rules and the General Rules of the Organising Committee.

LODGEMENT OF ENTRIES

2) The website for lodgement of entries is www.feisentry.com. The website provides clear instructions on how to complete the lodgement process. All entries must be lodged through this website and full payment made by the deadline of 1st July 2012. No entries can be lodged after this date.

3) Following lodgement through the website, an email confirming all entries submitted and the total fee payable will immediately be sent to the teacher.

4) Entry fees for the Australian Championships must be paid online by 1st July 2012. The only forms of payment to be accepted are Credit Card, visa or mastercard or Debit Card visa or mastercard. (AIDA Convention Minutes 2010)

5) A copy of the emailed confirmation of entries and payment receipt, must be received by The Returning Officer

(Vicki Paulin, P O Box 556, Brentford Square, Victoria 3131) by no later than 5.00pm (EST) Thursday 7th July 2012. Failure to complete this procedure, within this deadline will render your entry invalid.

6) Entries received after the due date will be treated as late and not accepted.

7) Members need to be aware that once entries are ‘SUBMITTED’ online they need to pay the amount on the confirmation email. If the amount on the confirmation email is not fully paid entries will not be accepted

8) It is the responsibility of the teacher to ensure that the entry as submitted on line is correct. When the confirmation email is received, names and dates of birth must be carefully checked. Spellings etc. as submitted by the teacher will be that which appears both in the Official Programme and on Certificates.

9) Incomplete entries will not be accepted. All dancers’ names for both solo and ceili entries must be submitted by the closing date of 1st July (AIDA Convention Minutes 2008).

10) It is the responsibility of the teacher to check that any overseas dancers fall within the Rules of Entry for the National Championships i.e. being a resident. In the case of a non-permanent Australian Resident, the teacher must sight proof of Residency issued by the Australian Department of Immigration and provide copy of same to Regional Council

11) No refunds will be made for any entry money received.

AGE LIMITS

12) The age of a competitor shall be taken as on 1st January 2012. Where a competitor’s birth date falls on 1st January he/she shall, for the purpose of the Australian Championships be regarded as under the age attained on that day.

13) Birth Certificates must have been sighted by each Regional Branch prior to the Australian Championships.

PRIZES

14) Prizes will be awarded in each section in accordance with the rules of AIDA and as determined at its conventions

(AIDA Convention November 2005).

15) All perpetual solo trophies must be returned by the person who signed for the trophy or by their representative (Convention Minutes 2012)

16) Perpetual trophies must be returned on time and in good condition to the AIDA Inc. representative responsible for the trophies. All trophies must be returned at least the day prior to the Presentations for that section. The holder and his/her parents and teachers holding ceili awards shall be responsible for any loss of or damage to the trophy while in the holders possession. The holder’s teacher shall be responsible for ensuring that the trophy is returned in time and in good condition. Competitors / teachers failing to comply with this rule may be refused the right to compete at the Australian Championships and will be subject to payment of a fine of $200. (AIDA Convention Minutes 2010)

TEAM ENTRIES

17) Entries for all teams must be submitted by the entry closing date including the list of all team members

18) A dancer must not be a member of more than five (5) ceili teams.

ORDER OF DANCING, CONDUCT, MISHAPS

19) Competitors must:

a. Obey all instructions of the Organising Committee; otherwise permission to dance will be withdrawn.

b. Dance in numerical order as published in the official program.

c. AIDA Inc. has the right to commence a Championship not more than 30 minutes prior to the scheduled commencement time.

d. With the exception of the first section of the day, dancers must be in costume and ready to dance not less than 30 minutes prior to the time scheduled for their competition.

e. Present to the marshalling area when called to do so by Stage Personnel. Sections will only be called for ONCE.

20) Should a dancer lose a heel or a complete shoe or have an open lace, he/she may stand back, allowing the other dancer(s), where applicable, to continue dancing uninhibited. In such a case the dancer concerned will be permitted to re-dance as soon as it is deemed practicable by the stage personnel.

21) No liability is accepted by AIDA for any injury caused to any person, including but not limited to, competitors, however caused and whether or not caused by the negligence or default of AIDA, its servants or agents. The lodgement of an entry will be deemed to be an acceptance of this provision

22) Should a dancer fall, slip or bump into another dancer on stage, whether in solos or in teams, the adjudicator MUST ring the bell thereby stopping the performance of all dancers on stage. Dancers so affected will be permitted to redance and will be marked then at the discretion of each individual adjudicator.

23) Should in the opinion of the Stage Personnel ( in consultation if deemed necessary with medical personnel) a dancer be unfit to re-dance, and if such dancer insists on performing the dancer concerned will only be permitted to re-dance on completion of a formal declaration which removes the organising committee of any liability. Any repeat accident/incident which results in that dancer being unable to complete the required number of bars in any round, will result in the dancer withdrawing without question from the championship

24) If a dancer falls during the last 8 bars of any performance, then he/she will only be required to dance the last 16 bars of that dance again at a time convenient to both the dancers and the stage stewards

25) A competitor must not walk off the stage during a performance unless instructed to do so by an adjudicator. A dancer who dismisses themselves from the stage without the permission of an adjudicator will not be marked for that particular dance

26) If at any stage during a performance on stage an adjudicator feels that, due to the health and safety of a performer on stage that the performance should be stopped, the adjudicator must ring the bell

27) Respect for fellow competitors on stage is a requirement at all times. Lack of respect or courtesy for fellow competitors by aggressive dancing on stage will be subject to penalty at the discretion of each individual adjudicator

28) No pacers will be used in either team or solo sections.

29) The starting number for each solo round will be determined by ballot prior to the commencement of the Championships and will be printed in the program.

30) The light rounds from 13 yrs upwards will be danced 2 at a time and the heavy rounds will be danced 2 at a time from

15 yrs upwards. All other ages will dance 3 at a time.

31) The Organising Committee will provide official musicians for the championships. In the case of figure dancing and own choreography championships, teams who have not submitted pre-recorded music, MUST use the scheduled musicians rostered for that championship. It will be the responsibility of the teachers requiring specific music to make any necessary arrangements for a recording of same direct with the musicians.

Direct contact must be made to the relevant musician no later than 1st August 2012. Please note sections will not be delayed to allow for practice time with the musician(s). All recorded music will be played through the official sound system.

32) Decisions of the Organising Committee as to the interpretation of these rules and in relation to all other matters pertaining to the Australian Championships shall be final.

SOLO CHAMPIONSHIPS RULES AND DIRECTIVES

1. The required dances for each competition are set out at Appendix A (Solo) and Appendix C (Teams).

2. A set dance list is no longer required and dancers who recall are responsible for advising the MC the name and speed of their set dance, from the 9 years age group and up. All set dances must be from the official list contained in this syllabus and be performed within the specified speeds (Appendix B).

3. In all championships competitors will dance the heavy dance first

4 Dancers will dance 48 bars in the Reel and Heavy Jig, 40 bars in the Slip Jig and Hornpipe, with the exception of the Sub Minor Championships who will dance 32 bars of Jig, and a Traditional Set Dance comprising Full step (short) and half of the Set (long). The 9 yrs Championships will dance 32 bars of Hornpipe.

5. The new rules as contained in the World Syllabus pertaining to false starts, etc will apply to all feiseanna in Australia. (Convention 2012 Minutes) Dancers beginning to dance before or after the stipulated 8 bar introduction will automatically receive a ZERO for that round from all adjudicators

6. When the first two dances in a championship have been completed the official points system will be used to place the competitors in order of merit over the two dances. On this basis, and subject to the minimum competitor requirements (refer convention 2009 minutes), a limited number of competitors will be recalled for the set dance round. A dancer who fails to complete one of the dances of the first two rounds will not appear in the recall round.

7. In all competitions only recalled competitors will perform their set dance. The number of points gained by competitors, on their overall placing in the first two dances will not, for obvious reasons, be disclosed at the recall stage- only the list of those recalled will be announced in numerical order.

8. The onus of ensuring that the stage personnel are informed of the correct metronome speed, and the correct title of the set dance, will rest with the dancer who should advise these details at the time of registration for the recall round.

9. In the case of set dances, introductions will be played only once. No variation of the speed of the music will be permitted once dancing is due to commence. Should a dancer submit an incorrect metronomic speed to the stage personnel and commence dancing at that speed, then the dancer must continue to dance at this speed as no further opportunity of tempo change will be afforded.

10. Speed for Traditional Set Dances is as per list – Appendix B

11. In all competitions, competitors must commence their dance in the first two rounds from the designated starting points. In the set dance round a competitor may choose his/her starting point

12. Any competitor in breach of the CLRG & AIDA Inc. Rules will be subject to disqualification.

CEILI DANCING CHAMPIONSHIPS RULES AND DIRECTIVES

1. These rules and directives must be read in conjunction with the general rules and other relevant sections of this syllabus and those contained in the World Syllabus 2012.

2. The number of teams to be entered in each Championship must be submitted by the closing date of entries

3. The full name and date of birth of each team member must be furnished by 1st July 2012. Any subsequent changes must be notified to the Organising Committee prior to 1st September 2012.

4. All Ceili teams entered as Teams A B C etc. must dance in the position in which they are balloted and the composition of the whole team cannot be changed after the entry has been submitted.

5. A dancer must not be a member of more than one team in the same competition except in the case of an unforseen emergency and then only with the consent of the Organising Committee.