Competition Tour

Empire National Dance Competition

Empire National Dance Competition · 2026-27 Season Schedule

Empire National Dance Competition is a family-owned regional dance competition company based in Statesboro, Georgia, and a sister company of Inspire National Dance Competition. For its 2027 season Empire hosts 16 regional events across Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Alabama, Arkansas and Virginia. Empire offers five participation levels - Extraordinary Stars (for dancers with disabilities), Recreational, Competition, Competition Elite, and Pro/Am - across six age divisions (Mini through Adult). A three-judge panel scores routines on a 300-point system weighted Technical Ability 35%, Synchronization/Execution 25%, Choreography/Routine 20%, and Presentation/Performance 20%, earning adjudicated tiers from Titanium to Silver. Awards include Overall Top Awards, the Groundbreaker Award, a Student Choreography Award, Category Winners, the Empire Studio of Distinction, and Empire All-Stars who are invited to perform at Inspire NDC's National Finals. Empire registers through DanceCompGenie and does not accept independent entries.

The Empire National Dance Competition tour runs 16 upcoming events across 18 cities this season. Browse the full schedule below — every regional stop, date, venue, and (where confirmed) nationals.

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About this tour

Headquarters: Statesboro, GA
Judges: 3
Awards system: Each entry is adjudicated on a 300-point scale with tiered awards - Titanium, Platinum Elite, Platinum, High Gold, Gold, and Silver - with score ranges that vary by division (Recreational, Competition, Competition Elite); Titanium is reserved for Competition and Competition Elite routines. Additional recognition includes Overall Top Awards (the top 20/18/15/12/10/8/5/3 or overall 1st, set by Empire per event), Judges' Choice & Choreography Awards, a Student Choreography Award, the Empire Studio of Distinction and other Studio Awards, the Groundbreaker Award (each of the three judges hands out Groundbreaker trophies, plus Wild Cards), Category Winner awards across eight genres, and Empire All-Stars (Junior/Teen/Senior Competition & Elite dancers selected to perform at sister company Inspire NDC's Nationals). A Regional Title competition awards a Trophy, Tiara (Miss)/Crown (Mr), and scholarships.

Judging criteria:

All solos, duet/trios, and groups are judged on a 300-point system across four weighted criteria: Technical Ability (35%), Synchronization/Execution (25%), Choreography/Routine (20%), and Presentation/Performance (20%). Ties are broken by the technical score. Scoring is electronic; each studio receives a digital video recording of the judges' critiques, and scores are available online.