CHAPTER 8:

DANCE AS COMPETITION
Dance as a Competition
 Knowing and understanding the nature of
a specific dance and mastering several of
its techniques are just the first few steps in
learning the dance. Bringing it to a
different level, such as to a dance
competition, challenges the dancer to a
certain extent and further enhances
his/her experience in dancing
INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY

Arrange the jumbled letters to form word/s and tell

something about it the class.

1. CENDA 6. OHIPPH

2. RHEECGEDLNAEI 7. ERKAB NCDAE

3. RCEHECADEN 8. TZWLA

4. NCADE SRPSTO 9. SMEOVTNME

5. TTRESE NCDAE 10. NACED UQTHICNEE

CHEERDANC
E
“Strength in motion, unity in dance!”
CHEERDANCE
 Cheer dance is a relatively new
category in the world of sports and
dance, emerging in the early 1990s
as part of cheerleading events. It
focuses on dance techniques and
basic elements of cheerleading,
excluding stunts and advanced
gymnastics skills.
WHAT IS CHEERLEADING?
 Cheerleading involves cheers and
organized routines for sports team
motivation, audience entertainment, or
competition. It includes cheers, jumps,
dance, gymnastics, and stunting, with the
main goal of encouraging spectators to
cheer for their teams.
HISTORY OF CHEERLEADING
 Cheerleading originated in the United States,
linked to the historical development of crowd
participation at athletic events. It can be traced
back to the late 19th century when students from
Great Britain began cheering for their favorite
athletes at sporting events.
HISTORY OF CHEERLEADING
 The first organized, recorded yell done in
locomotive style was performed on an American
campus in the late 1880s. Organized all-male
cheerleading began at the University of
Minnesota in 1884, and women cheerleaders
were officially included in the 1920s.
What are the elements of a cheer dance routine?

Cheer dance contains dance techniques, essential

elements of cheer, and basic gymnastics skills.

1. Dance techniques – Depending on the competition

requirements, various techniques may be used in a cheer
dance competition. Some squads prefer contemporary
dance techniques, while others incorporate several
methods, such as jazz, hip-hop, modern dance,
contemporary ballet, and ethnic or folk dance.
However, cheerleading style dance
tends to be more rigid and sharper
than contemporary or pop-culture
dance styles (Carrier & Mckay, 2006).
The emphasis is on the movements’
placement, sharpness, and
synchronicity.
 The World School Cheer Dance Championship, for
example, requires a hip-hop dance style. The
University Athletic Association of the Philippines
(UAAP) cheer dance and National Collegiate
Athletic Association (NCAA) cheerleading
competitions do not require a specific dance style
in the routines. The teams are given the freedom
to choose their dance styles for their respective
performances as long as they adhere to the safety
and competition guidelines.
2. Elements of cheers – Cheers are the
coordination of organized words and
movements relating to an athletic event.
These are used during a sports event when
the play has been stopped on the field or court
The purpose is to draw a unified response
from the crowd to highlight their support for
the playing team.
 Cheer motions are also used to lead the crowd
and emphasize words for crowd response (Carrier
& Mckay, 2006). These are made up of hand, arm,
and body positions. Although cheer styles may
vary according to the cheerleaders’ preference, all
motions originate from the standard basic
movements. Here are some of the positions of the
hand, arm, and body for cheer motions:
 ARMS/HANDS MOVEMENTS
Beginning stance and cheer stance
“T” and half “T” positions
Clasp, clap, overhead clasp, low clasp
Touchdown, low touchdown
High “V” and low “V”
Tabletop and punch, etc.
 “L” and diagonal positions
 LEGS/FEET POSITION
Feet Together
Feet Apart
Dig (front and side)
Hitch, Liberty, and Scale
Lunge (front and side)
 Knees and Hips position
 Pyramids
 Composition:
 Flyer Base Spotter
 Levels: One-and-a-half high
 Two-high
Two-and-a-half high
LOW CLASP FRONT LUNGE

TABLETOP
3. Basic gymnastics skills – Cheer
dance incorporates simple gymnastics
skills, such as jumps and tumbling, to add
to the thrill of the game and the effect of a
routine. Also, these help cheerleaders to
develop a higher fortitude level and
enhance crowd motivation. These skills
must work smoothly with the cheer.
B. Tumbling – It is very dynamic and an excellent
way to shake a crowd up quickly. Properly
incorporated tumbling can be a real attention-getter
and a crowd-pleaser. Tumbling may be executed
simultaneously by several tumblers or the entire
squad. Thus, cheerleaders in a team must have an
identical technique in tumbling to strengthen the
uniformity of the routine. As Carrier and Mckay
(2006) have mentioned, any inconsistency in proper
form or positioning detracts from the overall level of a
team’s performance.
What are the basic formations in cheer dance?

 Formations in cheer dance are crucial to the

success of a squad’s performance. A team may
use several formations, but the two commonly
used traditional formations are the following:

1. Bowling Pin
2. Staggered line
1. Bowling Pin The formation is
set up like bowling pins in a
bowling alley.

This works excellent when

highlighting a few members on a
squad/team. The figure on the
right is an example of a bowling
pin formation.
2. Staggered Line It is a simple
line where the back line is
positioned in the front line’s
windows (space in between
individuals). Vertical lines in
formations highlight differences
in levels rather than suggest
squad uniformity.
The segments of a cheer dance routine include:
1. Music Section:
2. A mixture of several songs, cut and linked
together.
3. Additional elements like sound effects, breaks,
voice-overs, and other musical choices enhance
the routine.
4. The music is upbeat, fast-paced, and adds
creativity, setting the tone and pace.
• It motivates both the cheerleaders and the
spectators.
2. Cheer Section:
Shows support for the school or program
represented.
The style and pace depend on
competition guidelines.
• Cheerleaders must master skills,
transitions, and performance elements
to bring the routine together.
What are the popular cheerleading or cheer
dance competitions in the Philippines?
Several organizations and associations that hold
cheerleading and cheer dance competitions exist in the
Philippines, but only a few are featured in national media. They
are the Cheerleading Philippines Federation (CPF), Philippine
Cheerleading Association (PCA), National Cheerleading
Championship (NCC), University Athletic Association of the
Philippines (UAAP), and National Collegiate Athletic
Association (NCAA), to name a few
 Among these groups, the National
Cheerleading Championship (NCC) organizes
dozens of Cheer and Dance Camps with 6,000
athletes per year throughout the country
(“National Cheerleading Championship,” n.d.).
Both UAAP and NCAA hold annual cheer
dance and cheerleading competitions,
respectively; however, they only consist of
universities and colleges in Metro Manila.
Example of
cheerleading
criteria for
judging:
DANCE SCORE
SHEET: