Maisie Hancock, USD Competition Officer
Southampton Dance Competition hosted 11 competing universities and just under 400 dancers (393), which is double the size it was last year! It was a sold-out event and there were 700 attendees in total (including dancers).
There was a wide range of categories including ballet, tap, contemporary, jazz, commercial, street, solos, duos/trios, and wildcard.
We brought in 3 industry professionals for the judges panel, including the highly esteemed Jack Evans.
We also had guest performances from Phoenix, a local dance school, and Continuity, a dance company for graduates who wish to continue pursuing dance alongside their careers.
USD worked in partnership with Stage Society for lighting, music and the livestream.
It also raised money for CALM and Strauss Foundation with our ‘name the seal’ charity stand (£167.25).
Moments of the day to highlight:
- The debut of USD’s new mascot, the Teal Seal
- Our Advanced Contemporary squad getting not one, but 2 special awards!
- A judge’s standing ovation for our SKBD Wildcard piece, which later went on to win highest scoring dance of the day!
- Our Advanced Tap squad winning a judge’s choice award
- Our competitors in the solos and duos/trios categories
- All our captains that choreographed a dance for the stage
- All our freshers for doing so well at their first university dance competition
My favourite part of the day was the awards ceremony! Watching everyone go up to collect their trophies was so wholesome and all the universities were so supportive of each other’s accomplishments.
If anyone is interested in joining USD, or any SUSU society for that matter, please just go for it! You really do create the most unforgettable memories, and I can 100% guarantee you will not regret it. Our members always praise how being a part of USD and participating in events such as Southampton Competition have completely shifted their uni experience and how they couldn’t imagine a world without it! We are always here with open arms to accept anyone who is interested in joining dance, whether you are a complete beginner or have danced before coming to university.
