Rules & Regulations:
1. Must be an Elkhart County resident.
2. All performances will be timed. A 10-point penalty will be deducted from the score that exceeds the designated time. Time allotted are as follows:
- 2:00 minute limit for solo acts.
- 2:30 minute limit for duets & groups of 3 or more.
- 5:00 minute limit for band performances.
3. The Elkhart County 4-H Fair Youth Talent Contest consists of two divisions.
- Junior Division: 12 or less of age (If you turn 12 years of age during the 2024 calendar year, you must enter the Junior Division. )
- Senior Division: 13-18 years of age (If you turn 13 years of age during the 2024 calendar year, you must enter the Senior Division.)
4. Group Acts must compete in the division determined by the ages of the majority of the group. No one older than 14 may compete in the Junior Division.
5. Entries may be accepted in the following eleven categories for both the Junior Division and the Senior Division.
- Vocal Solo - Female
- Vocal Solo - Male
- Vocal Group
- Instrumental Solo
- Instrumental Group
- Dance Solo
- Dance Group
- Novelty Solo
- Novelty Group
- Tumbling Solo
- Tumbling Group
The following are to be used as guidelines and are subject to interpretation by the coordinators of the Youth Talent Contest.
A) Vocal Solo - Female / Vocal Solo - Male
Shall consist of a solo performance by a vocalist. Instrumental accompaniment by herself/himself or others is allowed but must assume the pure character of accompaniment. The test shall be whether the performance would stand alone if the accompaniment were removed. Any background vocal on CD must be minimal. If composition is written by the performer and he/she wishes this to be judged as part of the act, it will be placed in the Novelty Category. (No props allowed.)
B) Vocal Group: Shall consist of a performance by two or more vocalists, males and/or females. Instrumental accompaniment by themselves or others is allowed but must assume the pure character of accompaniment. Any background vocal on CD must be minimal. If composition is written by the performer and he/she wishes this to be judged as part of the act, it will be placed in the Novelty Category. (No props allowed.)
C) Instrumental Solo
Shall consist of solo instrumental performance by a male or female without vocal utterance. Accompaniment is allowed but must assume the pure character of accompaniment. The test shall be whether the performance would stand alone if the accompaniment were removed. No instrument of the same nature may be used for accompaniment. If composition is written by performer and he/she wishes this to be judged as part of the act, it will be placed in the Novelty Category.
D) Instrumental Group
Shall consist of a group of instrumental performance by a male or email without vocal utterance. Accompaniment is allowed, but must assume the pure character of accompaniment. The test shall be whether the performance would stand alone if the accompaniment were removed. No instrument of the same nature may be used for accompaniment. If composition is written by performer and he/she wishes this to be judged as part of the act, it will be placed in the Novelty Category.
E) Band
Must consist of four (4) or more members. The definition of a band is one (1) lead singer, one (1) bass player, one (1) lead guitarist, and one (1) drummer/percussionist.