All the right moves: competition experts share their rules for making a great piece.

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When you choreograph a piece for a competition, you want to walk away with a prize. So what does it take? Are there moves that you should include or a certain song that judges really love? We asked competition experts for answers. With their input, we give you 11 tips that will help you achieve a winning number.

STAY KID-FRIENDLY

All of our experts agree, start to finish, top to bottom, the number needs to be age-appropriate. "Everything from costuming to music should be something a student can relate to," says Mitchell. "Stay away from inappropriate moves and suggestive songs. They're shocking to watch."

Don't just bleep out unsuitable lyrics--avoid the song altogether. "Editing out a phrase doesn't mean the audience doesn't know what it was," says Stone. "Every kid in the audience is singing the real words. You can find good music without doing that."

The story needs to be age-appropriate, too. "An 8-year-old shouldn't be doing a dance about falling in love or out of love or acting like they're mentally unstable in a straight jacket," says Fazio. "I would rather see them do something they can understand."

BE TRUE TO THE DANCE'S STORY

"Sometimes people rely on acrobatics that don't always fall into a dance vocabulary," says Mitchell. "When you go off on an acrobatic approach it's because you want to impress us, not tell a story. I like to see new choreography, not necessarily new tricks."

It doesn't need to be complicated. "There's a tendency to over-choreograph," says Turner. "Then there's so much happening you lose the story and connection to the music. Less is more. Keep it simple."

Make each movement matter in the context of the piece. "I saw a wonderful tap number and out of nowhere they started doing fouette turns," says Lanteri. "The magic completely disappeared."

UNDERSTAND THE MOVEMENT

Understanding the story is necessary, but understanding the movement plays just as important a part. "If you have a 13-year-old doing a modern dance but he doesn't understand Graham, Horton, or Limon, it just doesn't work," says Mulrey. "I'd rather see them do something they do understand not only in the mind, but the body as well."

CHOOSE MEANINGFUL MUSIC

"Music choice is a big deal, just like on American Idol," says Mulrey. "If someone has a fantastic voice but they pick the wrong song, it doesn't work. Pick something believable. If the kids enjoy it, they'll command the stage. They'll love what they're doing and we'll love it with them."

So does it matter if you use lyrics or not? Not really. "I want a connection between the choreography and the music," says Turner. "I don't care what the song is, it just has to have meaning. If the music is right, and the choreography makes sense with it, then you have a good piece."

SHOW THEM SOUL

"Have passion," says Mulrey. "Just make sure it's authentic. The judges can tell when you're faking." How do you convey it? "Show us your heart," he says. "It can't be cheesy--it has to be real. Sometimes performers force it. When someone is touched and they express that, it's beautiful. It engages not just me but the audience."

PUSH BOUNDARIES ... BUT ONLY DO WHAT CAN BE DONE WELL

"Dancers should feel they are presenting themselves doing what they do best," says Lanteri. "But you also want to push outside of your comfort zone. There's a growing factor for having taken a risk."

Just make sure that the dancer can rise to the occasion. "I don't like watching someone struggle," says Fazio. "Don't have them do a double pirouette if they always fall out of it. Have them express themselves in a different way."

"It is the choreographer's job to make the dancers look their absolute greatest," says Lanteri. "But you still see studios that feel they need a certain number of tricks and without them they won't achieve the success they hope for."

Sometimes it's better to play it safe. "A well-trained dancer can do the simplest of choreography and be beautiful," says Lanteri. "Technical proficiency is the first thing that jumps out to me. On our score sheets it says technique is 50 percent of the score."

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Should you abandon tricks? Not necessarily. "There are a lot of popular moves--like the illusion," says Stone. "It's a terrific trick if done properly, but if done poorly it's a terrible thing to have in there. Let the dancer do what they do best even if it's not quite as difficult. It has to be clean."

IF YOU'RE USING A PROP, MAKE IT MATTER

Think of new ways to use props; you'll impress the judges. "Props are thrilling when what's done with them is not what you expect," says Mitchell. "I've seen wooden suitcases a lot. The dancer will put it down and you know they're going to tap on it." Sometimes props are presented in the beginning, then thrown off. "So why even use it?" says Mitchell. "It didn't add anything. Don't use props just because you've run out of ideas."

A successful prop is integral to the story. "I saw a piece about breast cancer," says Tolson. "One girl bad a pink dress on, everyone else had a black dress on. Over the course of the piece the girl with the pink dress would pass it to another girl--seamlessly. Everyone had the pink dress on at some point. It showed how cancer touches every woman."

BE ORIGINAL

Think of ways to reinterpret songs. "Do it a different way," says Mitchell. "I don't want to see the standard 'Thriller' choreography from 1982."

Be surprising. "One of the most unique pieces I've seen recently was 'Bye Bye Blackbird,'" says Turner. "They came out in full hunting gear--literally hunting the bird. Then a blackbird flew out of the wings! It was hysterical. It was not a trick piece--just an amazing concept."

Remember originality means original work. "We're seeing a lot of stolen routines," says Tolson. "People will take something from So You Think You Can Dance. Instead of being creative they're stealing a step or even a complete routine. We can't give you a 9 or 10 in choreography if it's not yours."

DON'T FORGET FACIAL EXPRESSION

"Every once in a while you'll get a dance where everyone has the perfect expression and then you get one person who is just not with it," says Fazio. "Why are you smiling when everyone else is doing a number about death?" If a dancer smiles during a sad piece, or is somber during an upbeat number, talk to them about the dance's intention. "Watch their emotions," says Fazio. "Let the kids sit down to listen to the music. Discuss the story you're trying to tell. They need to know what to be feeling."

DON'T SEND THE SAME PIECE 58 TIMES

"There are just too many routines coming from one place," says Fazio. "If a school enters in several categories, they often show similar ones and sometimes that hurts a teacher. The first routine, I'm sort of surprised, but by the fifth time I can tell you what's going to happen next. I shouldn't be able to call your dance. Reevaluate the amount of numbers you are sending and make sure different people help in the planning."

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Need some new ideas? "Allow your dancers to work with outside choreographers," says Lanteri. "You aren't guaranteed a winning number--but it's good for kids to push beyond their comfort zone. A local teacher can be providing great training, but I think it is also important they try to expose the kids to as many different styles and talents as possible."

MAKE SURE EVERYONE FEELS COMFORTABLE

"I'm a real advocate that the dancers feel comfortable in the costume you give them," says Stone. "Pay attention to your selection of costumes and be sure that everyone is going to look good. A child who is too thin is just as unattractive as one that is heavy. Don't think about the four little girls that look great--think of the one that doesn't look good."

At the end of the day, you want everyone to have had a good time. "Competitions prepare you for the performance world," says Mitchell. "It's about creating the dancer's security onstage. Encourage them and make them want to perform." The quality of experience they have learning and rehearsing a number, and the confidence they feel performing will shape their dancing for far longer than a competition season. Whether or not it takes first place, they will have come out ahead.

THE PANEL

Robbie Mulrey, judge, Starbound National Talent Competition

Derek Mitchell, teacher and choreographer, Broadway

Dance Center, Steps on Broadway, Dance Olympus, Dance Masters of America, Knicks City Dancers

Joe Lanteri, executive director of New York City Dance Alliance

Michelle Tolson, director, Dancers Inc.

Sarah Jo Fazio, judge, International Dance Challenge

Sarah Turner, judge, BravO! National Dance & Talent Competition

Nancy Stone, vice president of Dance Olympus and DANCEAMERICA

Khara Hanlon is on associate editor at Dance Magazine.

Plug In, Dance on!

Making appealing choreography year after year is a challenge. Sometimes the ideas just won't come. Don't give up. Try a software program like Dance Designer from ChoreoPro Technology (www.choreopro.com). You can create avatars for your dancers as you work out movement patterns and try different music. The result: a polished preview for students of what you want from a piece, broken down step-by-step and count-by-count.

The program lets you move back and forth easily to pinpoint hiccups in the flow, synchronize music to movement, organize and store information on your dancers, and more. Whether you play with a software program or escape to an art gallery for inspiration, there's always something out there to get your creative juices flowing.

--Katelyn Friel