All spectators must pay at the door on the day of competition according to the following rates:
Adults: $15
Students with ID from any school/campus: $10
16-and-under: $7
The admission fee permits unlimited entrances and exits to and from the event area for the duration of the competition.
A limited number of housing spaces are available with UCBD members for out-of-town teams. These spaces usually take the form of a couch, futon, or floor and are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. To request housing, please contact the Competition Coordinator at competition@ucbd.org as soon as possible.
The UC Berkeley Ballroom Classic is restricted to amateur ballroom dancers. Although collegiate in nature, this competition is open to all amateur level ballroom competitors. However, due to logistical considerations, there will be no age categories (i.e., no Pre-Teen, Junior, Youth, or Senior categories).
All syllabus events are closed syllabus and will be strictly invigilated. In other words, any figure in a syllabus routine can only be at the level of the event or in any level below.
Furthermore, those competing in International style events must dance International style, and those competing in American style events must dance American style. For International syllabus events, please reference the ISTD or DVIDA listings. For American syllabus events, please reference any published listing. A comprehensive list of both ISTD and USISTD syllabus listings can be found here.
The Invigilator shall be responsible for all decisions regarding syllabus infractions. In the event of an infraction in an event that is not a final round, the offending couple will be called to the head table and be given a warning. Couples committing an infraction in the final round of any event (even those events with just a final round) will be automatically disqualified. The Invigilator’s decisions regarding syllabus infractions will be final.
The Chairperson of the Judges (or Head Judge) shall be responsible for overseeing the judging panel and shall be responsible for decisions regarding any problems with marking, ties, or adjudication decisions. The Chairperson’s decision shall be final.
All competitors are allowed to dance at one’s proficiency level and the level above for each style. For instance, it is acceptable for a syllabus level couple to dance in Bronze and Silver Standard and then also compete in Silver and Gold Latin.
To determine one’s level of eligibility, one should utilize the YCN Proficiency Points system. Calculation of one’s aggregate YCN points should be based on all DanceSport competitions that one has attended regardless of whether or not the competition was YCN sanctioned. For more information on calculating YCN Proficiency Points, see “YCN Proficiency Points” below.
Please remember that one should NOT dance below one’s proficiency level (even if one’s partner is at a lower level). This practice is not fair to the other competitors in the level as it defeats the purpose of having a stratified level system.
All shoes worn by competitors must not have the capacity to damage or alter fundamental characteristics of the floor. In particular, shoes should be non-marking and non-gouging. Shoes with suede soles (i.e. actual ballroom dance shoes) are naturally recommended but not required as we recognize that not all dancers are willing to invest in a set of ballroom dance shoes.
All ladies’ shoes must have heel protectors. Heel protectors can take on a variety of forms – clear plastic covers, suede taped to the heel, etc. Suede heel protectors will be for sale at the registration table for $3 per pair.
All competitors should note that at no time are they allowed to apply powder, oil, or other dance aids to their shoes in an attempt to alter the coefficient of static and kinetic friction between their shoe’s soles and the floor. Dance aids on the shoes will transfer to the floor and over the course of a competition will seep and become ingrained into the floor, making it unsuitable for dancing and other activities. Please familiarize yourself with this policy to avoid the frustration of getting pulled from an event due to a shoe policy infraction.
A fun team match will be held in the evening. Each team must have between 6 and 8 people. Registration and further information for the team match will be available on the day of competition.
The YCN system recognizes five consecutive levels, in increasing order: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Pre-Champ and Champ.
Placing in the final of a certain level earns you points simultaneously in that level and the ones below it. Once you earn 7 (seven) points in a level, you can no longer dance at that level.
Events qualify only if there was at least a semifinal danced. Points are earned as follows:
So, that means...
...placing 3rd in a Silver International Cha Cha event with a semifinal round will give you 1 point in Silver International Cha Cha and 2 points in Bronze International Cha Cha.
...placing 5th in Bronze American waltz will give you no points if there was only a final or semi-final and 1 point in Bronze American Waltz if there was a quarterfinal.
...placing 2nd in Gold American Bolero with a quarterfinal round will give you 2 points in Gold American Bolero, 4 points in Silver, and 7 points in Bronze (thus automatically eliminating you from any Bronze American Bolero events).
As always, points are awarded to each member of the couple, and couples must always dance to the higher level of the two competitors.
In multiple-dance events, points are earned for each dance according to the combined placement. E.g. if you place 3rd in a Silver Samba/Jive event, you earn points for placing 3rd in Silver Samba and 3rd in Silver Jive, even if the actual separate placement was different (like 2nd and 4th).
If there is only one open level at a competition, points are earned as if it were Pre-Champ. Similarly, if there is a merged-level event (e.g., Silver/Gold or a Gold event when there is no Silver offered at that competition), then points are earned at the lower level (in both cases of our example, Silver).
UCBD is not liable for any injuries that may occur during the course of this event. All persons at this event compete/attend at their own risk.
UCBD is not responsible for any property that is stolen or damaged during the course of this event. All participants/attendees are responsible for their own belongings.
UCBD reserves the right to cancel any events and/or change the schedule at any time.
Competitors and spectators should be aware that during the course of competition, anyone in the ballroom may be photographed or videotaped by any variety of people for private or public viewing. Everyone attending this competition hereby consents to be photographed or videotaped by their attendance at the competition.