THE AMP EXPERIENCE

Welcome to AMP Dance Competition, the new and vibrant competition turning up the “VOLUME” for you. Our mission is to provide a superior performance and competitive experience while providing an event where your passion for the arts can also change someone’s life.

We weren’t satisfied with the standard dance competition mold; we think studio owners, dancers and their families deserve more. If it’s your first time competing with us, here’s a bit about what you can expect from your AMP Dance Competition experience.

Family-Friendly Event Schedule

We believe we can provide better service and more one on one time by producing fewer and shorter events. We want to always promote our FAMILY culture by keeping our events to a manageable time and day for all ages. We have a sellout number of entries to ensure the following…

• Performers will never be required to miss school to attend an AMP event.
• Awards will never go late into the middle of the night.
• We recognize that Sunday is a school night, therefore, all performances AND awards are wrapped up by 8:30pm.

While scheduling is not an exact science, AMP always tries to provide an on-time event that follows the published performance order. We suggest that you arrive ready to compete, with hair and makeup done, 1 hour prior to your scheduled time. AMP may run early, but will never run more than 30 minutes ahead. Breaks will be inserted to “slow us down” if necessary.

Assigned Dressing Rooms

AMP hopes to spread out our participating dancers amongst all provided dressing rooms. Though it is not guaranteed, AMP tries to give each studio their own designated space or shared space with other studios for dressing rooms. A boys dressing room will always be provided. We ask that all dancers and their parents/guardians are restricted to their specifically assigned dressing room and are asked not to enter other dressing rooms to help provide a safe, clean and comfortable changing environment.

Members of the opposite gender are NOT allowed to enter each other’s dressing rooms; this rule will be strictly enforced. Please use dressing rooms for costume changes and getting dressed ONLY. We ask that you do not use the dressing rooms as a place to gather, hang out, or rehearse in between numbers. To help with heightened sanitation guidelines, we ask that you only bring what is absolutely necessary for your stage performance to the venue. Please leave extra items such as blankets, iPads, foot stretchers, bands, etc. at home. Absolutely zero food, snacks, drinks are allowed in the dressing rooms. (Water only is permitted)

We ask that you clear out ALL personal items from the dressing rooms after your last performed routine BEFORE your awards ceremony. This helps AMP free up more space for the students arriving for the next session. If you are NOT in consecutive performance sessions, we kindly ask you to clear your dressing space and return prior to your session. For example, if your child is in section 1 and section 4, we do ask that you clear your items to provide space for dancers participating in section 2 or 3.

Backstage Organization

Our AMP girls backstage work diligently to make sure our events run smoothly and safely. To prevent overcrowding and congestion, our backstage area is reserved for AMP staff, performers, teachers and studio directors only. We ask every number to check in backstage with an AMP girl 3-5 numbers prior to their dance. Prop parents are allowed backstage 3 numbers prior to the entry to help load and unload props.

To help with the flow of dancers on and off stage, we will line up checked in numbers so that one dance is on stage, the next dance is set up backstage or in the wings, and the following dances are waiting “on deck” nearby. To keep our transitions tight and on-schedule, we encourage dancers to enter the stage as the number before them bows and exits, rather than waiting to be announced.

In the case of a build-a-stage situation with stairs, the AMP staff may need to set rules for entering and exiting on certain sides of the stage and which wings. This is to protect the dancers from any collisions, etc. If our added rules disrupt your starting pose, we will give all dancers the proper time to find their marks on stage with zero penalty on score. By attending AMP, you are agreeing to follow all AMP staff rules and we appreciate your cooperation.

For production numbers, we will clear out backstage and hold the following numbers “on deck” to prevent traffic or collisions with dancers and props. When the production is finished, we will hold for a moment to clear the production dancers and props from backstage and allow the next number to set up in the wings.

Teacher Appreciation

We cherish our relationships with studio owners and teachers and recognize that your cooperation and support is what makes AMP successful. To show our appreciation, AMP provides teachers and studio owners with snacks and water throughout our events. AMP also hosts one Teacher Luncheon at each event to connect with studio owners/teachers, listen to your feedback, and continue to improve the AMP experience for YOU and your dancers. This is an RSVP’d luncheon, so please make sure you RSVP by the given deadline.

Positivity and Friendship

We believe that the art and passion of dance teaches many life lessons. It’s about more than scores and trophies. It’s about using our love of dance to inspire and lift one another. We each have our own competitive goals within our own dance studio, however, supporting another’s success won’t ever dampen yours.

Our “PAY IT FORWARD” program will hopefully give kids the confidence to meet new dance friends. Each participating studio is given a small trinket or gift for each and every student, and we encourage every student here at AMP to use these as a tool to communicate with someone new in a positive way. Truly watch, support, and be inspired by someone new. Pass the trinket off to someone you don’t know, but inspired you. We discuss and call the kids up at awards to discuss how they “Paid it forward” or how it felt when they received one.

Dancing for “YOUR” Community

We believe in the philosophy that “You can’t live a perfect day until you do something for someone who will never be able to pay you back”-John Wooden. We believe in inspiring each other to be giving members of our community. Our mission is to provide a superior performance and competitive experience where your passion for the arts can also change someone’s life. Therefore, every student who participates in the AMP experience is a part of something much greater.

NEW THIS YEAR, as each studio competes, you will have the chance to dance for a children’s charity of your choice through our “Culture of Caring” Award. The Culture Award will be awarded to the studio we felt brought love, positivity and kindness to our event and their competitors. Not only will they win a beautiful trophy for their studio, but they will also win our largest cash prize to a charity of their choice.

The charity must be a children’s charity and an officially registered non-profit organization. If the awarded studio does not have a specific charity they would like to donate to, AMP will donate to Sunshine Angels, a nonprofit committed to providing life changing guidance for foster children on behalf of AMP and the winning studio. This provides an opportunity for every student to use their skill and love for dance to better the community and directly impact someone’s life.

Recognition for ALL Dancers

We at AMP understand that all dancers have something AMAZING they bring to the stage regardless of skill level and score. We recognize that all dancers are at a different place in their journey whether that be the beginning, middle, end or somewhere in between. AMP has created numerous special awards that have nothing to do with score, but are equally commended, so that all dancers have a chance to feel recognized for their strengths as Artists.

Everything You Need in One Place

AMP is partnered with DanceBug to streamline your competition experience. During your event, you can access a live schedule, full event program, and live stream all through the DanceBug app.

When attending any AMP Competition event, you will receive ALL of your photos and videos of every routine your dancer participated in for FREE!!! All your photos and videos will be uploaded to your DanceBug account 48-72 hours after the event’s completion.

ALL critiques and ALL scores are also uploaded to your DanceBug account 24-72 hours after the event’s completion. We will provide critiques and scores for every routine, however, your studio owner may have their own set of rules for sharing this information. Please reach out to your studio owners with any questions. You may also contact DanceBug by emailing support@dancebug.com.

Community Shapes Culture…

We believe the people you surround yourself with reflect who you are and who you can become. AMP is part of a community where the best in the industry share their ideas and approaches, helping everyone become better. The result is a culture of teamwork, innovation, kindness, and shared success! We are so proud to be a More Than Just Great Dancing preferred vendor, and uphold the values of MTJGD in our own culture.

Relationships Help Us Grow…

We believe that collaboration between teachers, students, and AMP staff is what makes our events so successful and positive. We cherish our relationship with YOU, our supporters, and we want to make sure your needs are met at our events. AMP hosts a Teacher Luncheon at each event to connect with studio owners/teachers, listen to your feedback, and continue to improve the AMP experience for YOU and your dancers.

Always Do the Right Thing…

When we make a promise, we WILL deliver on it. If we make a mistake, we will not only own it, we will fix it. In short, we will always do the right thing. Working together to find solutions and improvements is a top priority for us here at AMP.

That is the AMP way!