Rules

The general rules apply to every class. Each discipline adds its own.

General rules

1. G1 The Competition shall be known as the “Cheltenham Festival of Performing Arts”.
2. G2 There is no geographical restriction for any of the Performers, except for the Young Performers’ Award.
3. G3 No persons gaining all or a principal part of their livelihood from music, speech, drama or dancing may compete, except in the classes marked “Open” (This Rule does not apply to Conductors of Choirs). The Committee reserve the right to refuse entry to an Open Class where the performer’s experience may be insufficient.
4. G4 The management of these competitions and all matters relating thereto shall be in the hands of a Chairman and a Committee with a Secretary and Treasurer, whose decision on any matter shall be final.
5. G5 In the event of there not being a sufficient number of entries in any Class, or in the opinion of the judges the competitors do not show sufficient merit, the Committee reserves to itself the power to withdraw any or all of the awards.
6. G6 Time limits must be strictly adhered to and competitors who over-run will be penalised with the loss of one mark per minute or part of a minute, and will run the risk of not receiving a mark. Time limits do not include any introduction to the piece.
7. G7 In the event of there being fewer than 5 entries in a Class, the Committee reserves to itself the power to cancel that Class. In that event, entry fees will be refunded.
8. G8 All performers attending any kind of school and who enter classes that take place during the school day must have approval from the head teacher, otherwise they will be denied entry to the class on the day. See headteacher approval.
9. G9 Performers should ensure that they are dressed appropriately. The well-groomed personal appearance of competitors will be taken into account when adjudicating performances and awarding marks.
10. G10 Certificates with the Adjudicator’s comments will be available at the completion of each class. For two months after the end of the Festival, certificates not collected during the Festival may be requested from the relevant Section Secretary and will be sent by post on receipt of a payment of £5.
11. G11 (a) No cup or trophy will be awarded for marks under 85. (b) In the event of more than one person being awarded a cup or trophy, they shall hold it for a proportionate time in alphabetical order of surname. (c) All cup and trophy winners must provide a name and contact details before taking the cup away. (d) Medals will be awarded on the following basis: In classes for age 10 and under (i.e. primary school age) and for instrument Grades 1 and 2, gold, silver and bronze medals will be awarded for all class sizes. For age 11 and above and Grade 3 and above, where there are 5 or fewer in a class, only a gold medal will be awarded; in a class of more than 5 but fewer than 10 participants, a gold and silver medal will be awarded; in classes of 10 or more, gold, silver and bronze medals will be awarded. NO medals will be awarded in any “Open” class. (e) No medal will be awarded for marks under 80. (f) In classes other than “Open” classes, where a cup is awarded, the winner, on production of the cup winner’s certificate, may purchase a gold medal from the Festival Office for the sum of £8.00.
12. G12 The adjudicator’s decision is final.
13. G13 All entries must be made online or be sent to the respective Section Secretary on or before 1st February. Entries received after the closing date will only be accepted at the discretion of the Section Secretary.
14. G14 (a) In the case of numerous entries, the Committee reserves the right to divide any class which may be considered too large for adjudication. (b) For classes split into ‘a’ and ‘b’ sets, each set will be adjudicated with 1st, 2nd, 3rd places and medals. Only one cup will be awarded overall. (c) Classes may be combined if the numbers are too low.
15. G15 Age limit is reckoned as on 31st August in the year preceding the Festival and this will be strictly observed. All performers under 19 years must include their date of birth at the time of entry. Entry Forms without the competitor’s age (under 19 years) will not be accepted.
16. G16 The Committee regrets that Fees cannot be refunded under any circumstances other than Rule G7, or in the event that a Headteacher’s Approval has been refused.
17. G17 Performers are urged to ensure they have entered the correct Class on the entry form, as transferring Classes cannot be guaranteed, and will not be permitted after the commencement of the Festival.
18. G18 No photography, sound recording or video recording of any kind is permitted within the Town Hall, except by personnel approved by the Festival Committee. This is in line with our Child Protection Policy, copyright law and the licence under which we hire the Town Hall.
19. G19 Performers in “Own Choice” Classes may not offer items with which they have already won prizes in past Cheltenham Festivals.
20. G20 Performers may not enter more than once in the same Class unless specified, nor may they enter the same piece in more than one Class.
21. G21 Performers should perform in the order given in the programme unless involved elsewhere, in which case they must notify the steward. Those not answering to their names when called will be recalled at the end of the Class, however the adjudication will not be delayed.
22. G22 The Festival reserves the right to commence any class up to 15 minutes earlier than the published time.
23. G23 Performers who have entered classes which overlap, should first attend the class in which they appear earliest in the order. In the event of any difficulty, the Adjudicator’s Steward should be consulted.
24. G24 The Use of Recorded Music at the Festival. This Festival is affiliated to the British Federation of Festivals and participates in its Group Licence to cover payment of fees for the use of recorded music at its event. Teachers using tracks created from commercial recordings are advised that they should themselves seek permission to re-record from the companies concerned as the Festival cannot take responsibility for this.
25. G25 Cups and trophies must be returned clean and in good condition to Don Browning Trophies, 4 St George’s Street, Cheltenham GL50 4AF, no later than the end of March prior to the next Festival.

Music rules

1. M1 All general rules apply to the Music classes.
2. M2 ‘Own Choice’ titles do not need to be notified on the entry form. ‘Own Choice’ pieces must conform to the standard of tests set at the Festival and the Committee reserves the right to refuse a piece, in the class, that is not of the required standard. Titles of ‘Own Choice’ music must be announced.
3. M3 An original score of music, not a photocopy, of an own choice piece must be in the room. A copy of own choice music must be handed to the adjudicator at the beginning of the class, and in the ‘Set Piece’ classes, the prescribed edition and key, where specified, must be used. Failure to do either of these will mean that the Performer will receive an adjudication but no mark. See also Copyright and licensing.
4. M4 If an accompanist is required, they must be engaged directly by the performer. The Festival does not provide accompanists. A list of potential accompanists can be found in the online Syllabus.
5. M5 Performers in ‘Own Choice’ classes may not offer items with which they have already won prizes in Cheltenham Festivals, nor may they enter the same piece in more than one class.
6. M6 Pre-recorded backing tracks are only permitted where stated in the class description. Playback equipment will be provided. Backing tracks must be brought in on devices (phones, tablets or laptops) with a 3.5mm microphone socket, USB-C socket or Apple Lightning socket. Tracks must be downloaded onto the device beforehand.
7. M7 Songs from the Shows: Performers are reminded that, due to Performing Rights, no costume or scenery may be used. Movement is, however, allowed.
8. M8 Coaching: No instructions, mouthing of words or gestures by a teacher, tutor, or parent is allowed during a performance. This, and/or any other off-stage direction, may result in a loss of marks.

Dance rules

1. D1 All general rules apply to the Dance classes.
2. D2 The Festival is not liable for any copyright infringement caused by recordings supplied by the performer.
3. D3 All backing music for Dance classes must be provided in advance of the Festival by uploading tracks to an online system. This online system will open on the CFPA website on 1st December, and all tracks must be uploaded by 1st April.
4. D4 A Performer may not perform the same Dance in more than one Class.
5. D5 In the Group classes, all performers must be on the stage and active during the major portion of the dance.
6. D6 Performers may not dance more than once in any Solo Class. In Duets a performer may only enter one Classical Class and one Cabaret Class, and likewise in Trio classes.
7. D7 No School may enter more than 3 groups in the Group Classes, and a group must consist of at least 5 persons.
8. D8 Performers may not transfer to another Class without prior permission from the Festival Office.
9. D9 Cabaret Duets, Trios and Group classes may include song but should not include vocal on the backing track.
10. D10 In Tap Classes, only ‘standard’ taps (single sound) must be used.
11. D11 Pointe work is not permitted for any performer under 13 years of age.
12. D12 Performers will be allowed to re-dance but will not be eligible for first, second or third place.
13. D13 Individuals shall not be eligible to perform at the Festival if they have changed dancing schools since 1st September in the year prior to the Festival. Note: This rule is in place to allow sufficient time, after an individual has moved to a new dance school, for the dancer’s performance to be appropriately developed by the new teacher, thereby safeguarding the dancer’s physical and psychological wellbeing.
14. D14 Individuals attending full time vocational dance schools are not eligible to enter.
15. D15 A Novice is a performer who has not gained 1st, 2nd or 3rd place in any solo section at a comparable Festival. Song is not allowed in the Novice Section. Performers may enter Novice or Open sections, but not both.
16. D16 Titles for National and Character dances must be brief and succinct.
17. D17 Competitors will not be allowed to dance out of section under any circumstances.
18. D18 In the interest of safeguarding, no viewing of performances from the Town Hall balconies will be allowed.
19. D19 For Health and Safety reasons, only stud earrings may be worn by competitors.

Speech and Drama rules

1. SD1 All general rules apply to the Speech & Drama classes.
2. SD2 Coaching. No instruction, mouthing of words or gestures by a teacher, tutor or parent is allowed during a performance. This and/or any other off-stage direction may result in a loss of marks.
3. SD3 Prompting. The adjudicator and steward must not be expected to prompt if words are forgotten; performers are advised to provide their own prompter who must not be their teacher; in case of difficulty, performers may ask for help from the office.
4. SD4 Performers entering “Own Choice” classes must ensure that the selected pieces are of a suitable standard for the age group. Teachers and students are requested to be aware of the sensitivity of the audience regarding the content of the scenes. Language likely to cause offence must not be included.
5. SD5 None but hand properties (e.g. a fan, handkerchief, scarf etc.) will be permitted.
6. SD6 In ‘Own Choice’ classes, a script must be given to the adjudicator before performing in the class.
7. SD7 Full stage costume must not be used, but limited items to suggest character are permitted. See also General Rule G9.
8. SD8 Alterations. Performers wishing to request an alteration to their published performance time must inform the Speech and Drama Secretary a minimum of one week before the Speech and Drama Section begins. Requests may not be accepted after this time except in exceptional circumstances.

Copyright and licensing

The festival holds licences that let performers use copyright material in their classes. They do not cover everything, so check what applies to you before you choose a piece.

Printed music: the Music Publishers Association

The festival is a signatory to the MPA Code of Fair Practice, agreed between composers, publishers and users of printed music. Under it, one specific photocopy is permitted.

The adjudicator’s copy. If you are performing a work in front of an adjudicator you may make one copy for that adjudicator, provided you hold an original yourself. The copy must be marked Adjudicator’s copy, destroy after use, and the adjudicator keeps it and destroys it immediately after your performance.

Nothing else may be photocopied. Every other copy used in the performance, including your own and your accompanist’s, and including anything made electronically, must be a legally purchased original. See also rule M3.

This permission applies only to music from publishers who have signed the MPA Code. The list of participating publishers is on the MPA website (opens in a new tab).

Poetry, prose and solo drama: ALCS

Our group licence with the Authors’ Licensing and Collecting Society covers spoken performances of poetry and prose up to ten minutes.

Solo dramatic items are also covered, provided the title and author are announced at the time of the performance, and provided the performer does not change the words or the gender of the character.

Duologues and group dramatic works, including musical theatre, are not covered. Unless you hold another licensing arrangement, gaining copyright permission and paying any royalties due is your responsibility.

Live and recorded music: PRS and PPL

Our group licence with PRS for Music lets instrumental and vocal classes perform compositions and play a recorded backing track where one is allowed. We also hold the PPL licence needed to play recorded music in public at the festival.

For Songs from the Shows and Song and Dance classes, excerpts from musical plays may be performed provided that the excerpt:

• does not exceed 25 minutes
• is not a complete act of the musical play
• is not a shortened version of the whole musical play
• is performed without any change to the music or lyrics, using only published or authorised arrangements
• uses no scenery, costume, choreography, staging, character representation or special lighting that recreates the writer’s original conception of the work the excerpt comes from

If you are unsure whether your piece is covered, ask your section secretary before you enter rather than on the day.

Mark schemes

Dance, Speech and Drama, and Music (except Open Piano)

90 and over	Outstanding
85 to 89	Honours
80 to 84	Distinction
75 to 79	Merit

Open Piano

90 and over	An exceptional performance, both technically and artistically
87 to 89	An excellent performance technically and artistically
84 to 86	A convincing performance technically and artistically
81 to 83	A capable performance showing some artistic appreciation and/or technical ability
78 to 80	A performance showing development of technique and/or communication
75 to 77	A performance limited in its communication