Competitions
Preparation, presentation and the practical side of competing, from your first heat to your next event.
Preparing for ballroom and Latin competitions
Competing changes how you train. Routines have to hold up under pressure, presentation is judged from across the floor, and a full competition day is long. The guides in this section cover the practical side of competing that lessons alone do not always reach.
Competition guides
- What Is DanceSport? A Beginner's Guide to Competitive Ballroom Standard and Latin dances, levels, pro-am and amateur, and judging.
- Ballroom Competition Packing List Everything to pack, plus a night-before routine.
- What It Really Takes to Create the Ballroom Look Dress, hair, tan, makeup, jewelry and shoes as one image.
- Dance Competition Makeup: A Practical Guide Step-by-step makeup that reads under stage lights.
Pro-am, amateur and showcase
Most adult students start in pro-am, dancing with their teacher, before moving to amateur partnerships. Showcases are a lower-pressure way to perform a routine in front of an audience without being ranked. Each path has its own rules, levels and costs, and the right one depends on your goals and schedule.
Coaching with a World Cup Champion
Jelena Stojkovic is a World Cup Champion, 14-time National Champion and International Winner, and has been named a Top Female Teacher in the United States nine years in a row. She coaches pro-am and amateur competitors in the Dallas area in technique, routines, floor craft and competition preparation.
Learn more about our competitive ballroom and DanceSport coaching, or read about the competition dances Cha Cha, Rumba, Waltz, Tango and Foxtrot.