Welcome to
THE COMPETITION SQUAD
COMPETITIONS
COMPETITION SQUAD
Our competition teams are selected each year through auditions and are split over several age categories including some ‘mixed’ age teams. At Gifford we enter our dancers into national competitions where they compete against the best from all over the U.K and beyond. Our previous competition teams have all been hugely successful and qualified through to numerous finals at Blackpool Opera House and Liverpool Echo Arena. Once in the competition team there is the possibility that dancers may also be invited to enter solo competitions and additional events. Being part of the competition squad is a big commitment so it’s only for dancers and parents that are prepared to dedicate themselves to the team, however it is also a fantastic experience and incredibly rewarding, allowing dancers to make friends and memories that last a lifetime.
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Being in the squad will literally change a dancers life, giving so many opportunities, but in return (and especially as this is a team) those accepting a place must be prepared to be flexible and put in a lot of time and effort. If just one member of the squad is missing a routine will not work and may even become unsafe to perform.
We have far too many competition highlights to list here, but just a few from recent years, are shown below:
GIFFORD DANCE RECEIVE TOP HONOURS AT BLACKPOOL OPERA HOUSE TO END 23/24 SEASON!
In January 2024, after winning through in heats, Gifford Dance Academy were finalists in the largest group dance competition in the UK! They performed six sensational routines on the prestigious stage at Blackpool Opera House. The Seniors were awarded the Adjudicators Award, the Mini Team came 4th out of 30 finalists of the highest standard, the Mixed Age Team came both 2nd and 3rd in their genres and GDA also won awards for the best choreography and also for the most original routine!!! This was the perfect way to end our very successful competition season and we are looking forward to auditions for next season in February.
WINNERS OF THE WEEKEND! SYWTD NOVEMBER 2023
Our competition teams truly excelled AT 'So You Want To Dance' in Milton Keynes, with our mixed age acro routine being chosen as the best out of all the 400 entries across the event. All our group routines placed in the top three and three of them were firsts! We had brilliant results in solos and duos with so many medalists, including golds and special awards for phenomenal performances!
Winners of the whole event!
In September we took our competition team to Peterborough and to one of our favourite competitions called Born2Perform. We put on stunning routines and had incredible results!
We are delighted to come away for the second year in a row as overall champions with our mixed team dancing again in the wildcard final to be crowned the FIRST PLACE WINNERS!
On top of this, 6 out of our 7 group routines placed 1st. We were the top scoring experienced group of the day, and we secured two wildcard places. Not to mention one of our solo’s and one of our group’s came away with a PERFECT SCORE! All those who performed solos, duos and trios did exceptionally well and there were plenty of medals and trophies awarded, including loads of first places. What an incredible reflection of the hard work and commitment put in every single week by our dancers.
Thank you to the organisers for a brilliant event.
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Amazing results! A huge well done to every single dancer, your coaches are so incredibly proud of you all!
CHAMPIONS - BORN2PERFORM 2023
ELITE DANCE CHAMPIONSHIPS 2023
The new competition season has officially begun and kicked off to a brilliant start with EDC in Mablethorpe in July. We think this video speaks for itself. What a fantastic time was had by all.
Spectacular routines, both in groups and in solos, duos and trios and of such a high standard. We look forward to seeing what the rest of the season brings.
National Champions of Born 2 Perform 2022!!!
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We were so excited to learn (via an online video countdown) that our mixed age routine has been chosen, out of ALL THE ROUTINES THE JUDGES HAVE SEEN THIS YEAR ACROSS THE UK, as the very best!!!! How wonderful to find out right on Christmas too! Such an outstanding achievement indeed, and we are absolutely thrilled. To win such a huge national competition is a great honour and we thank the organisers for all they do. This is just a snippet of the video which you can find at https://fb.watch/hA2rbOLqSg/ where the whole routine is shown.
Congratulations everyone!!!!
Lots more information to put up about Blackpool Opera House finals too as soon, as we get a chance!
BORN TO PERFORM OCTOBER 2022
MAXIMUM MARKS AND CHAMPIONS
Team Gifford danced a total of 36 routines and came away champions of the competition, with our mixed team dancing again (as they did last year) in the wildcard final, which they won. The senior team also received a wildcard award. Every single group we entered placed 1st or 2nd, we had the top scoring novice group of the day, top scoring experienced group of the day and top scoring soloist of the day with some of our routines coming away with a PERFECT SCORE!
The results speak for themselves, an incredible reflection of the hard work and commitment our dancers put in every week
GROUP RESULTS:
1st Mini team - Runaway baby
1st Mini team - You are the reason
1st Mixed Team - Running
1st Senior Team - Toxic
2nd Junior Team - Glory
2nd Senior Team - Work song (dancing up an age group as well )
JUDGES CHOICE AWARDS: Abi, Ruby and Lucy
SOLO AWARDS:
1st places went to Jess C, Emma, Emily, Teagan, Ruby and Lucy
2nd places went to Maisy, Bethan and Ruby
3rd places went to Alivia, Jess G and Sophia
4th places went to Jess F and Mia D
5th place went to Chloe
DUO/TRIO AWARDS:
1st place went to Maisy and Poppy, Ava and Alexie, Bryher and Ciara, Ruby and Teagan, Abi, Chloe and Amelia, Bethan, Emily and Sophia, Amelia, Jess and Nanci, Kacy, Lily and Mia
2nd place went to Alivia and Sophie, Hollie, Kara and Keira
3rd place went to Poppy and Bella
IMPROV AWARDS:
1st place to Teagan, Ruby and Ivy-Lou
3rd place to Ruby
Amazing results! A huge well done to every single dancer, your coaches are so incredibly proud of you all!
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UNBEATEN ALL SEASON!
On 21st November 2021 our competition teams were fortunate enough to perform at Blackpool Opera House, many for the first time. We all had a brilliant weekend at a national competition of the highest standard. Here are the mixed age team on stage that day. They were awarded first place and have been unbeaten all this competition season. Quite a record! If you watch this then we think you will see why :-)
OUR MIXED AGE TEAM PERFORMED IN THE 2020 GRAND FINAL OF THE LARGEST GROUP COMPETITION IN THE UK!
Gifford Dance ‘mixed age’ competition team were in the GRAND FINAL of THE LARGEST GROUP DANCE COMPETITION IN THE UK. They performed at LIVERPOOL M&S ARENA which is a huge and prestigious venue. There were 22 heats, 4 all day semi-finals at Blackpool Opera House and approximately 220 routines in the Grand Final. Our team came 3rd in genre and 6th overall for their age out of everyone in the UK!!!!!!! Our dancers are absolutely excelling and what an outstanding achievement this is for them. Videos were tricky to film in such a large venue, so please don’t let the quality of the video put you off. We hope you will take a moment to appreciate the quality of the dancing instead. Three of these talented dancers are only age 10! We are just beaming with pride. Well done!
BEST IN SHOW!!!
DESTINATION
DANCE
KENT 2020
This weekend was an exciting one for us! This is a large national competition and the weekend included 448 routines of a very high standard.
On Saturday we took 11 soloists to perform and they certainly did us proud. Many were going solo for the very first time and every dancer gave it their all, truly deserving the following awards which they received: 6 silver medals, 3 gold medals and 2 gold plus medals and a first place in category. Gold plus qualifies these dancers for places in the nationals! Brilliant performances from all who took part.
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On Sunday it was Rebecca and Lucie’s turn to dance. They received first place for their duet and Lucie also did a solo. For the solo she received first place, a platinum medal, a scholarship award and WAS JUDGED THE VERY BEST IN THE WHOLE OF THE WEEKEND SHOW, which included all the solos, duos, trios and group dances!!!! What a wonderful weekend for GDA. Well done everyone!
NATIONAL CHAMPIONS NOVEMBER 2019 !
Our competition team travelled to Blackpool in November to perform in the Grand Final of Dance Challenge UK, one of the very largest group dance competitions there is. Our two squads had both come first in their heats and it was a real privilege to be in the final and for our dancers to have the opportunity of dancing on such a prestigious stage in front of thousands. For some this had been their very first competition!
What happened next was beyond our expectations! The mini team came FIRST in the Grand Final making them the NATIONAL CHAMPIONS and our mixed age team came second in THE WHOLE OF THE UK. Gifford are now well and truly competing with, and winning against, some of the very best and most established dance schools in the country and we are so proud of each and every one of our dancers.
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AWARD WINNERS IN THE LARGEST GROUP DANCE COMPETITION IN THE UK
In 2016 we entered the largest group dance competition in the UK called 'That's Showbiz'. Top stage and dance schools came from all over the UK to compete. There were 22 heats and we were more than excited when we made it through to the semi-final held at Blackpool Opera House!
We thought that we could only dream about a place in the grand final but after putting on a show stopping routine in Blackpool our group of seven (including dancers as young as ten years old) achieved their goal!!
On 11th March 2017 we had the absolute privilege of dancing in the final at LIVERPOOL ECHO ARENA in front of thousands. After an imaginative, creative, routine including lifts, throws and tumbles we WON the National Adjudicators Award.
