Competitions

5 Competition Types. The competitions will have divisions for Hustle, Salsa, Bachata, and West Coast Swing. 1) Pro-Am 2) Am-Am 3) Traditional Jack & Jill 4) Specialty Jack & Jill 5) Showcase & Exhibition
Partnered Competitions. 1) Pro-Am 2) Am-Am
Traditional Jack & Jill (Randomly paired with a partner each dance). For Hustle, you can only compete once in your skill division of Novice, Intermediate, or Advanced. These divisions are sanctioned by the Hustle Dance Tour (HDT) and eligible for earning points for the HDT. Competitors are only allowed to compete once at their own level. For competitors competing in intermediate or advanced, please make sure you have enough points to compete at that level or have been approved by a professional. For more information about HDT, their rules, and guidelines, please visit HustleDanceTour.com. For Salsa and WCS, there will be an Open division for Amateurs (no Pros).
Solo Competitions. 4) Specialty Jack & Jill - Hustle only! You can compete once in everey category of the special competitions. Pros and Amateurs compete separately.
Routine Competitions. 5) Showcasee & Exhibition. Routines must be choreographed and consist of a minimum of 50% Hustle, Salsa, Swing or Bachata. Music is supplied by the competitor. Costumes are highly recommended. Routines shall be no longer than three minutes and a minimum of two minutes. Pro-Am Showcase: For Pro-Am couples only. Am-Am Exhibition: For Am-Am couples only. Open Solo Routine: Open to Pros and Amateurs. No restriction on dance composition. Team Competition: Teams of 3 or more dancers comprised of any combination of gender and skill level. They will be judged as a group. If there are fewer than 3 entries in any division, the division will be cancelled and entry fees refunded.

All competitors must have an event pass to compete!

Competitions during social dancing do not require event passes.

Event Passes

Full Access

  • $364.99 – LAHC Extreme Event Pass:
    • Access to all competitions, workshops and social dancing

    • Premium seating at the Saturday night dinner & show

    • Hustle Unleashed 2.0 Intensive on Sunday afternoon ($75 if purchased separately)

    • $299.99 International Rate for attendees outside of US & Canada

  • $314.99 – LAHC Event Pass:

    • Access to all competitions, workshops, social dancing
    • Standard seating at the Saturday night dinner and show
    • $249.99 International Rate for attendees outside of US & Canada

Select Events

  • $239.99 – LAHC Salsa & Bachata Pass:

    • Access to all the salsa and bachata workshops including all competitions, workshops and social dancing
    • Standard seating at the Saturday night dinner and show

  • $249.99 – Saturday Full Day Pass: (Valid Oct 8)

    • Access for only Saturday Oct. 8th, which includes competitions, workshops and social dancing
    • Premium seating at the Saturday night dinner and show

  • $199.99 – Friday Full Day Pass: (Valid Oct. 7th)

    • Access for only Friday Oct. 7th, which includes competitions, workshops, social dancing
(event has passed. see you next year!)

After obtaining an event pass, competitors can select and purchase competition entries.

Specialty Jack & Jill Competitions

Bird Box

This Jack & Jill event consists of a leader who can see and a follower who is blind folded. Followers, it’s time to put your following skills to the test and see how well you really follow. Do you trust your partner? We hope so. Let the fun begin!

One-Armed

This Jack & Jill consists of a leader who can lead their follower with one arm (of their choosing) through-out the whole dance. Leaders, can you give the followers an amazing dance experience with just one hand? Followers, how well can you make all those turns happen with just one connection? Lets see who’s up for the challenge!

Roulette

This Jack & Jill event starts off with a leader and a follower, both during the course of the event, roles will swap whenever a certain sound is played by he DJ. Don’t panic, just swap roles. Can you switch roles effortlessly without being confused?

1 for 2 Stealers Special

The girl is mine! NO, the boy is mine… how about we settle this on the dance floor! Ok, you got it. This Jack & Jill event pairs 2 leaders with one follower. It’s time to put your stealing technique to the test. Can you switch partners and steal smoothly without interrupting the timing and keeping your follower engaged? Team work wins, there is no i in team.

S&A Hustle Musical Circle Challenge

Imagine the childhood game of Musical Chairs but the Lead is “the chair” 🪑 A judge will tap out a Lead among the couples. The remaining Follow hovers until… THE MUSIC STOPS! All Follows have to find a new Lead! The Follow without a Lead is eliminated. Repeat until there is only one couple left! Don’t be slow – in the words of Ricky Bobby, “If you’re not first, you’re last”. Get ready for some Epic partner changing moments!

2 for 1 Leaders Paradise

As a Leader, have you ever dreamed how amazing dancing would be with two followers? Well ALACAZAM… the Hustle Genie has just granted your wish! This Jack & Jill event grants 1 leader with 2 followers, partnered as a couple. It’s time to live out your leading fantasy on the competition floor. Can you lead two followers at once or is it too much trouble for the double?

Rules & Regulations

General

  • Competitors must sign a waiver acknowledging their compliance to the rules for this event.

  • Contest deadlines for entering all competitions is at 11:59PM on Oct, 1st.

  • Anyone can enter the Friday night Hustle Battle even without an event pass. It’ll be $25/entry.

  • During competitions, competitors must wear their bib numbers that will be assigned to them at the time of check in.

  • Good Sportsmanship is expected and must be exhibited at all times (Keep it 100)!

  • Competitors should stay in the ballroom at all times in case of last-minute adjustments and announcements.

  • All competitors must be ready to compete 15 minutes before their expected heat for any competitions.

  • Costumes are preferred and recommended for Pro-Am, Am-Am and Showcase competitive divisions. Costumes are not required for Jack & Jill divisions. Please do dress appropriately for Jack & Jill divisions. Remember you are being judged.

Divisions

Divisions (Skill). You can choose which skill and age division to compete in, except for Traditional Jack & Jill, where it follows the HDT point system. Novice: 1-2 years of dance experience. Competitors are expected to demonstrate solid basics. Intermediate: 2+ years of dance experience. This is the most common level at socials or parties. Advanced: Dancers with extensive knowledge of patterns, technique, musicality, and 4+ years of dance experience. They can handle more complex patterns and syncopated footwork. For each partnered competition, you can compete in two skill divisions: once at your skill division and once at a level above your skill division (eg. Novice and Intermediate). Pro-Am will have two additional skill divisions: Pre-Intermediate and Pre-Advanced.
Divisions (Age). Additionally, for each competition category, you can choose to compete in your own age division, younger divisions and/or the Open age division. New Gen: Dancers age 30 and under. Open: Dancers of all levels, excluding professionals. Masters: Dancers age 50 and over. Legends: Dancers age 60 and over. In Pro-Am, your age division is determined by the Amateur. In Am-Am, your age division is determined by the older of the couple.

Pro-Am

  • A Professional at the LA Hustle Congress, is defined as Professional dance instructor who specializes in teaching Hustle, Salsa or Swing for monetary gain; a reputable dance instructor known for teaching professionally throughout their respective dance community, and considers dance to be a primary or secondary means of income. An apprentice or assistant is not considered a Professional at the LA Hustle Congress.

  • An Amateur at the LA Hustle Congress, is defined as a dancer who considers dance to be their social or recreational hobby. A dancer that does not fall under the definition listed above for professionals.

  • A couples is defined as one leader and one follower. There are no gender restrictions at the LA Hustle Congress.

  • Amateurs are allowed to compete in each Pro-Am age division that they qualify for, per dance. Amateurs are allowed to compete at their skill level, and or one level above in each age division. Pros are only allowed to dance with 2 students max, at the same skill level, per dance.

  • Pro-Am skill levels should be determined by the Professional for their competitive Amateurs.

  • No lifts or aerials allowed. When competing, each dancer must have at least one foot on the floor at all times with the exception of an unassisted jump, skip, or hop. Couples must maintain physical contact with one another except for certain, spins, turns, break-a-aways, common visually lead patterns, and recoveries.

Am-Am

  • An Amateur at the LA Hustle Congress, is defined as a dancer who considers dance to be their social or recreational hobby. A dancer that does not fall under the definition listed above for professionals.

  • Amateur competitive couples must consist of one leader and one follower, with no restrictions on gender.

  • Amateurs competitive couples are to use their own personal assessment, or that of a professional, to discern their skill level for competition.

  • Bib numbers are to be worn by the Leader and not the follower.

  • No lifts or aerials allowed. When competing, each dancer must have at least one foot on the floor at all times with the exception of an unassisted jump, skip, or hop. Couples must maintain physical contact with one another except for certain, spins, turns, break-a-aways, common visually lead patterns, and recoveries.

Summary. For example, an Amateur Hustle dancer under 30 could compete up to 19 times: 4x Pro-Am: with a Pro partner, competing in Novice New Gen, Intermediate New Gen, Novice Open Age and Intermediate Open Age 4x Am-Am: with an Amateur partner, competing in Novice New Gen, Intermediate New Gen, Novice Open Age and Intermediate Open Age 1x Traditional Jack & Jill 6x Specialty Jack & Jill 4x Showcase: once with a Pro partner; once with an Amateur partner; once solo; once with a team