COMPETITION DETAIL

I’m honestly curious where our money went with this company…because it certainly didn’t go towards the event itself. We have been a part of the competitive dance world for over 6 years and Star Systems regional and nationals was by far the worst competitions we’ve ever been to. The venue (at both regionals and Nationals) but specifically at Nationals was TINY. I am fairly certain we were over capacity in there. The stage was off centered and there were not enough chairs to sit in. We had to stand in the back/along the sides or sit/lay in the ridiculously small dressing room. There was no where for the girls to stretch and mark their routines so groups were outside in the parking lot. There were 16-17 studios smashed into this venue. Even the police officer who was working security said they had never seen a dance company use the event center, they usually use a larger venue in the Wharf. The bigger issue is the blatant favoritism. Comments such as “we are so excited XXX is here with us again for another year” from the national directo. Studio owners saying “it feels like coming home being here” and studio owners sitting in the audience with the founder. The adjudication’s were not consistent and once you realized who kissed the directors butts, you could guess who was winning all of the awards. Out of 65 routines in the callbacks, 26 were from one studio and 12 routines were from another studio (again, there was 16 or 17 total studios). Awards took WAY too long. They bring up the entire group of dancers for every single award. It was also super unorganized. The entire staff is men (which is also kind of weird when dance is primarily younger girls) and were rude backstage. Another note, one of the judges said she had never been at a dance competition before. What?! How could you have a judge just starting at Nationals?! The sad part of all of this is….the same reviews have been circulating for years. It’s a shame our studio hadn’t seen them before we had to experience it firsthand. If you see this, save your time and money and choose a different company!

First I would like to compliment all of the talent! These athletes are amazingly talented, across the board! Now let’s get to Star Systems. Where to begin……. Let’s start with the Regional. Dressing rooms were absolutely not appropriately set up as anyone walking by could look in. Not private and this is a major issue for male and female dancers (especially female). Mr Jimmy did not look professional with his oversized suit and toe shoes. If you’re going with the professional look, dress appropriately, your credibility is lost. There’s also a time and place to chew gum, absolutely never while public speaking. The scoring was skewed and one sided. Back stage assistant was very rude. It’s understandable that it’s stressful, but realize it’s more stressful for the parents and athletes. You can never make it known to attendees your personal opinion about dances or props! That should be kept internal and never get out to the public. Let’s move on to Nationals…… Way too small. Smallest venue we’ve ever attended. AND THIS WAS NATIONALS! Unreal! 2,000-4,000 attendees and seating for about 500. 35-40 years in business and that was the best you could offer for the money each athlete spent. Dressing room was not big enough for all the studios. Talk about putting more stress on the dancers and parents. Zero place to warm up or practice. You let these athletes practice out in the 100+ degree heat. Medical experts recommend not being out in heat unless necessary. Horrible set up. Off-centered stage. REALLY? Seating was lacking significantly. Scoring was not consistent. You had a judge announce she never danced. What does she know about all these technical aspects each move consists of? Again, unproven and unprofessional. I don’t understand the same kids in Shooting Star AND Super Star. I understand one dancer, but their names are printed on the program. Doesn’t take a genius to figure it out. It’s extremely unprofessional to chew gum and be a professional speaker/visible public announcer. Toe shoes again with the oversized 3-piece suit. He’s not a giant strongman, so I’d assume a professional looking suit wouldn’t be hard to find. I’ve never seen so many music malfunctions at a competition. I know it takes time to play each song, but letting these athletes pause, reset, stop, redo, and try again, simply is unacceptable. Work the bugs out before showtime. When large groups were dancing, the whole stage was shaking and moving. Thank the lord above it did not collapse. Overall, horrible experience for the time, energy, and price that was paid to attend. These types of experiences are why talented athletes quit their sport. I WILL NOT pay for my student athletes to participate in a Star Systems event ever again. Feel like we were taken advantage of. It’s such a shame because Orange Beach is such a beautiful place to go to. Lemon law! Buyer beware!

By far the worst competition company ever. At the regionals the dressing rooms were classrooms and not even enough room for our whole team. The judging was horrible and they don’t hide the fact they play favorites. Staff was very rude and were talking bad about our studio and we heard them. Fast fwd to Nationals in Orange Beach. Venue was way too small for all the family and friends there to watch with not enough seats and the stage wasn’t even centered. The dressing room was not big enough at all for all the dancers. They played favorites there too and didn’t hide it at all. I’m not sure how dancers get to dance in both intermediate and advanced dances. And we shouldn’t have to pay for our pictures and videos as it should be included like most other competitions do. I will not pay $32 for a video! Very disappointing for all the money that was spent. Will never ever do this competition again. Jimmy Robinson can take his toe shoes and gum chomping elsewhere.

This competition was the human equivalent of a gas station bathroom floor. What a money grab. Sitting on the floors, leaning against the walls, changing on top of each other, practicing outside, what the heck. Hundreds of dollars gone down the drain. What a sham of a company, absolutely shameful. Also, toe shoes have a time and a place... not in a national talent competition. We know they tried their best, that is why we are disappointed.

If it were possible I would give a negative 10. This was the worst competition our team has been too. Hands down the worst. 4000 people in a space barely big enough for 500. Families standing against the wall instead of having seats. We paid a lot of money to be there as did many other families. This was a money grab for them to host a national competition in a small venue with teams coming for all over the country. This company should be ashamed of how they treated all the families there. We will never give them another dime I recommend no other studio give them money either.With so many great dance competitions to choose from why choose the worst.

Avoid Star Systems!! They dont do any research on venues. You pick the smallest place in Orange Beach. Mom's, dad's, kids & grand parents sitting on the floors because you dont have enough seats. You have kids outside in the parking lot practicing because its shoulder to shoulder inside. You have kids changing on top of each other. The judges are bad they have a couple groups who they like and have kissed the Golden ring so it turns into 1 or 2 studios who run the show. The staff is less then stellar, rude at times, disorganized and toe flip flops are not professional and let's face it I think he is slinging a few backstage. The comp in Loyola was disorganized and no where for the kids to change. There is so many competitions out there you'll be glad you didn't choose star systems.

This competition was awful! The venue was so so so so small for a sold out nationals! The parking did not accommodate for the large group of people coming! And the dressing room was so small people we're changing butt to butt! Not only that but the staff was very disrespectful to people with props and parents! The venue was not only small but parents and dancers we're sitting on the floor maybe if you're going to have a sold out nationals be smarter and get a bigger venue! And there was so little space children were practicing in the outside heat! Im so upset not only for my team but that we payed SO much money for bad parking, rude staff, wrong scoring from judges who leave no comments on dances, small dressing room, and zero parking! -100067/10 never ever go here and save your selfs dignity and money!

This competition was AWFUL! The stage PLASTIC AND SMALL!!! It had paint and blood on it. The judges comments had no music and the judges were very very rude. They stated that the costumes were in backwards but they weren’t and talked about how our feet were dirty. Never come here! It’s sucks and the judges are from temu and don’t know what a coupe is.

If I could give this competition no stars I would. First off, the venue choice was terrible. There was very little parking at the Loyola Academy and the “dressing rooms” were classrooms full of desks and chairs and trying to fit a team of 60 plus including dream duffles and moms helping was chaotic. Girls had to line the hallway and there was no privacy for them changing. Men were able to move freely up and down the hallways not to mention the students who go there. Second, the staff and competition owner were very snide and completely insincere. They were clearly only interested in two teams that were there and didn’t even try to hide their favoritism. The staff also complained about our props and yelled at our dancers. It was all incredibly unprofessional, unorganized and chaotic. The amount of money parents paid for their kids to perform at this competition was too much considering how we were treated. The judges seemed completely bored unless it was one of two studios they knew. I do not recommend competing with them unless you enjoy wasting your time and money.

This was by far and away the most disorganized, biast, blatantly clueless event I’ve attended. Scores were ALL over the place. My daughter’s solo had technique score of 29.5, 30, and 23. Uhh…what? The judge who low balled her, in his recorded technique said, “yasss girl! I’ve never ever seen that before”. Held at the opryland Graceland, it was disorganized, not well marked and advertised, and chaotic. I sure hope we never come back

I’m not even sure where to start. This competition favorites specific dance studios and doesn’t even try to hide it. The announcers know the dancers name and are goofing off with them back stage and at awards. My dancers went from scoring the highest adjudication (at least 295/300 points) last week and at this competitive we’re scoring platinums. Meaning a 20 point scoring difference for every single routine. The competition does also not allowing stretching or rehearsing before dancers take the stage. The venue was portly planed as well. The only way to the dressing rooms was through the audience and through the backstage area. There were men walking past the dressing rooms constantly because of this. The whole competition felt like pure chaos to be honest. Jumping around numbers, not having an organized set up, and being unprofessional. Our routines were good enough to be posted on their social media yet they were scored 20 points off. We will not be returning. I actually felt bad putting my dancers on stage at awards after finding out how 2 studios were very well known by the competition staff. Not sure how this competition is still running.

Venue was poorly planned, 1/2 of the seating was pushed so far right off the stage, they had to watch the comp on a screen. Judges were obviously biased to one “TV” studio. The competition didn’t follow their own rules and was a huge upset for all of the competitors. Huge waste of time, money, and effort. Do NOT recommend putting your children through this kind of treatment.

By far the worst competition I have attended as a dance mom and now a studio owner. The competition over sold the event therefore ran 2 hours late every night which made for a long weekend Sunday awards were not until 12am due to the fact we had a 3.5 hour drive home we didn't stay for awards. It's was very obvious 1 specific studio was definetly a favorite the direct even calling dancers, parents and studio owners by name. This same studio had dancers in the novice level which were definitely not novice the last time I checked dancers able to do leg hold turns at 7 years is not a novice dancer. I personally asked if the competition moves dancers up a level and I got the response that non of the judges had suggested it. It's sad that the poor true novice dancers didn't stand a chance. It all fell on def ears. The awards were a true cluster mess reading off dances so fast the dancers could understand the director. Oh and let's not forget all the issues with music. They would call studios to the music table and say the song wasn't uploaded when I know for us it was in fact there. This happend at least every 4 dances so don't tell me it was all these studios. The website to register is ancient too. Competition fees are much higher than most competitions as well. When checking in the first day they lady was so nice told us there was a room for our staff with snacks waters for us to enjoy throughout the week. They also said lunch would be provided each day on Saturday we got a text around 1245pm saying lunch will be available at 330pm I was glad that orderd lunch for my staff around 1pm since we started our day at 730am. I could go on and on but I think this posts a picture of how terrible this competition was. Spare yourself staff and dance families frustration and go a different competition.

Worst competition I’ve ever attended in the 6 years of dance. The competition ran behind all weekend with it running over 2 hours behind on Sunday, meaning things didn’t end until after midnight. One studio in particular was favored and it was obvious there were relationships beyond professional, with the Regional Director calling out prop dads by name while they were on stage, among other things. Special awards were limited. Because they were running so behind there was no fun at awards just straight to reading off routines at the speed of an auctioneer. There was no enforcement of rules regarding limitations on tricks and level placement. Nor were there any penalties for studios that were holding up the competition with not checking dances in timely. It made for a weekend that was not enjoyable and we will not attend again.

First and last time enter this competition. Not recommend to any studio owners and parents. They don’t give the right rewards to the right people. There are so many dance competitions on the market. You have better choice.

This was by far the worst dance competition I have ever been to. unless you are a favorite of theirs, I suggest you stay away and don't waste your time and money, they obviously were making their yearly returning customers happy. I was new to this competition, and I was the studio that took the least number of routines so that meant I didn't bring them the most money like the other studios did. I understand that at the end of the day, dance competitions are a business, and keeping well-paying returning customers happy is a must but also not fair to small studios. I watched routines that did not do so well get placed into the top 5 in the group category and was in complete disbelief, I also witnessed soloists being placed in the wrong levels, advanced dancers placed in intermediate, intermediate dancers in the Novice Level, so the poor Novice dancers had no chance which is unfair in so many ways but of course, the competition would never say anything to their high paying studio about putting them into their right levels because they want them back next year, they don't follow their own rules.

As a teacher and studio owner, there is no better competition. They treat the teachers amazing 👏 👏 👏. With that being said, the lack of understanding during covid when their events were canceled with no choice to be refunded was not satisfactory at all. They were the only competition that we didn't get our money back for which is the only reason we when in 2021 to get our credit. They had the event in an event center, which I personally don't like not having a real auditorium. Judging seems fair and everything else was good.

Marcy has never been professional in the many years we were with them. I came in as a new director and just followed suit with our studio’s loyalty to the competition. This past year many disturbing information surfaced about her, exposing her blatant racism. She has always come off as phony and I cannot hold this to myself anymore. After her racist remarks were exposed online my parents refused to attend this competition. And then she refused any sort of refund despite me kindly asking. No ethics on her behalf. She only denied all the surfaced messages and personal accounts that were exposed. She says they were fabricated. Hard to believe with many other peoples’ experiences they’ve told me they have had with her. Our parents lost that money because Marcy refused to refund. As a studio we paid in full for them to get that experience back at another competition. I could lead you in way more positive directions in this industry. Marcy is a complete phony. Do yourself a favor and take your business elsewhere!

This was the 12th competition I have attended, and the second time here. It was a terrible experience both times. I have danced myself for years so I have a good idea of technique and ability. The first two days the judges were tough on the scoring, which is fine because it was uniform. The last day it’s like they didn’t care anymore, the Sunday performers were given 5times the number of platinums as the two days before put together. It was so clearly not even standards or distribution. Dancers that consistently place in the top 3 at other comps against the same performers didn’t even reach top 10. 90% of the placement awards were for Sunday performers. With block schedules it was way more obvious than the previous year when we suspected it. Some schools were consistently late causing our kids to get thrown on stage randomly and early, no penalties to other studios. Very elaborate prop and set ups were allowed frequently taking large amounts of time delaying the competition and awards for others with no issues. Studios we know are talented and place well didnt place at all. It was so blatant biased and disappointing. They hammered us with COVID precautions and rules ahead of competition but then enforced NOTHING. Will never go again.

We were disappointed in this event. We were the first studio of the day and competed in block. When we showed up at the doors open time, there were no staff there. It took me 20 minutes to track a staff member down, and then I still had to ask for the dressing room location. At our start time, we went backstage, still having never had a staff member approach us. Even though we were ready to go, the competition started 20 minutes late. The rest of the competition was regular schedule, and we went back for the first awards ceremony. Despite the fact that the emails said that masks were required, the venue required masks, and we have a mask mandate in place in our city, 90% of the audience was not wearing masks and about half the dancers on stage were not wearing masks (and the stages were packed for awards with no social distancing). I emailed Jimmy Robinson to express my concerns and see if they could enforce the policy they advertised so that our dancers could attend awards. He said they were trying, but we ended up watching awards virtually the rest of the weekend and they never once made an attempt to enforce mask wearing. We were disappointed in the lack of customer service and the lack of regard for dancer and family safety at this event.

The owner DELETED her apology for her racist texts and emails. What a hypocrite! No accountability whatsoever for decades of racism. Star Systems will forever be remembered as one of the worst competitions ever.

Marcy Tuttle and this company should not be in this business, or any other for that matter, for committing acts of racial profiling towards PARENTS OF COLOR at EVENTS and for Marcy’s deplorable and openly, disgusting racist comments. She essentially supported slavery by stating that, “slavery made black people stronger” and that, “black people use slavery as an excuse” for the discrimination they experience today. She also stated that, “she has a problem with the black movement and that it should have ended when Rodney King was beaten to death”. Along with mentioning, “why do black people want to protest slavery?”. I am absolutely sickened by what she has done to the dance community and I fully support ALL FAMILIES, OF ALL COLORS, SPEAKING UP ABOUT WHAT SHE HAS DONE TO THEM AND I HOPE THE REST OF THE WHITE COMMUNITY WILL STAND UP FOR THEM LIKE I WILL.

There’s a screenshot that shows that the owner states that “slavery made black people stronger willed and harder workers” After the recent events involving an African American parent and the subsequent release of information including the statement above, Marcy Tuttle and Star Systems should be no longer supported due to her racially charged actions and statements. No place for this kind racist behavior in the wonderful world of dance. Studios continue to pull out of her competitions and stand for what’s right.

The owner of this competition is a racist. She singles out POC at her comps and shows little to no respect for them. Adding to that, Marcy gaslights people to make them believe she is doing the right thing, despite evidence of her poor attitude. It's disappointing that her behaviour has hurt so many people. She doesn't deserve the platform she had in the community.

The owner is a racist. Please spend your money at a comp that respects people of all races, ethnicities, sexual orientation, gender, ability, etc.

Be warned. The administration of this organization is discriminatory and racist. Protect your students, staff, and parents by choosing another competition.

Shocked by the recent events

The owner is a huge racist. Avoid at all costs.

I was also at the Ft Lauderdale event with Star Systems on 2/7

! WARNING! All studio owners, please avoid this competition at all costs! They obviously care about one thing and one thing only and that is which studio is paying them more! Which in my opinion It's not right whatsoever! And let's talk about how stingy they are with their awards! They obviously want to pocket as much money as possible which again I do not think it's right! Don't get me started on the owner, all I can say is she is extremely rude and won't answer any of your questions which I find to be very offensive after paying them a tremendous amount of money! There are many other competitions out there worth it and with better customer service do not waste your time and money on this one because money is all they care for!

At Nationals. Fixed from start to finish. Studios have directors cell number and text her on regular basis. If your not in that studio not a chance. Shameful. Based on who you know not talent.

Never been treated so well! Their "hospitality room" is the biggest spread of snacks and food (real catered meals!) I've ever seen at a competition. Star Systems understands our long days. Thank you to Marcy T and team.

Bor-ing! It's the little things like music between numbers and animated emcees that keep the energy level up. All our team dancers felt, as they put it, just blah, at this comp. Only comp I've been to where emcees where baseball cap and running shoes. That was weird. It all ran pretty smoothly, except when the emcee lost his place reading awards (repeatedly); it was just terribly boring. I certainly hope we don't do this one again.

My studio enjoyed our weekend at Star Systems so much! It was well organized, the staff was super friendly, and they ran on time (or early!) every day. The judges critiques were posted quickly and were very detailed. And as a bonus the teachers lounge was on point. They even had a hot meal catered in on Saturday! We will definitely be back!

What a wonderful weekend my students, parents and teachers were able to experience with Star Systems in Lakeland Florida 2/15-2/17. Marcy Tuttle and her staff made our first competition of the 2019 season Amazing. First class all the way!!

This was a really tough competition! But I liked that. I'd rather my daughter be challenged than feel like she just wins all the time.

This was the most boring competition my studio has ever attended. It was well organized but my parents & students could not wait wait for it to be over.The awards ceremony was so slow and non-engaging. I did like how they paid attention to teachers but did not recognize the studio owners.

Good competition. The biggest issue is they may need to limit the number of schools/performances, as the days were very long.

We had a great time at this competition this past season. The location in Athens Georgia is a bit big and overwhelming at some points but the competition itself was a great experience.

Our soloist was scheduled to perform at 6pm and did not perform until about 8-8:30pm. Awards were scheduled for 9pm and it didn't happen until nearly midnight. My soloist placed 4th overall but couldn't enjoy her accomplishment because she was falling asleep on stage! Girls were asleep on the stage and others just went home and let their teammates collect their awards. Awards were a cardboard cutout of a star..not impressed at all!! We will not be returning this season.

Very disappointed in the Detroit regional. Only 4 studios were registered for the entire weekend. I'm not sure why they decided to hold the event with only 4 studios. And of those 4 studios, no one was entered in the advanced division except for our studio (at least not in the Junior level) which left us competing against ourselves all day. They also seemed to give out overalls to every group / soloist. So if there were 6 girls doing junior, advanced solos; all six got an overall. Maybe this is something they cap at 10 at other regionals but with only 4 studios I don't think there were 10 routines in any one area so it made it seem like "everyone gets an award".

Very disappointed in the Rochester,NY competition this weekend. Totally overbooked! Judges were not even present at any of my daughter's awards ceremonies, due to the fact it was so tightly scheduled that there were no judges dinner breaks and the awards were so late at night they let them leave to go get some rest. Let the JUDGES leave to get rest -- what about 13 yr old KIDS? Therefore, there were no special judges awards, just adjudications. "You can read their bios in the program." Awards scheduled for 10:30 on Saturday night, then competition at 7 am Sunday morning? Then last awards 10:30 Sunday night? Ridiculous! We couldn't even stay for the last awards due to an over 2 hour drive home with school and work the next day. Also, junior photogenic awards were after Jr. solos, why were 13 and over photogenic in the very last awards ceremony? Why couldn't they be after solos, also? I would much rather be closed out of a competition and find an alternative, than to attend one so horribly overbooked. Definitely not in the dancers' best interest.

I had a really good time at Star Systems, but there are definitely some issues that they should look into fixing. I very much dislike the scheduling. Most parents will not be happy having their kid dance at 11am on a school day, and then dancing 7am-12am on the weekend. They definitely overbooked. Please close off registration sooner so this doesn't happen. It's just TOO MUCH. The music was quite loud, it seemed like they kept pumping the music louder and louder. It eventually got to the point where it hurt my ears on stage. It would have been nice of them to specify on their website which building the comeptition would be in. They simply said "Ohio Expo Center". Anyone form the area knows that the Ohio Expo Center is humongous and consists of many buildings. It was a hassle to try to find which building it was. Those three things can be forgiven, however, I am APPALLED that you would allow so much cheating. There was a studio that was VERY OBVIOUSLY leveling down. A novice dancer cannot just whip out 12 PERFECT al a seconde turns, switch leaps, and custom costumes. The whole competition knew what they were doing. You should be ashamed for not enforcing your rules. Those same exact dancers were competing in the elite category as well. It's a shame, they're really talented, but it's hard to respect people like that. I can't respect Star Systems for allowing that. I really did have a great time, I met new and old friends, the awards were very nice, the staff was friendly and helpful, the competition was professional and fast paced, but due to the blatantly obvious cheating and poor scheduling, we will not be back.

This was our second year attending Star Systems Talent. We had such a wonderful experience last year. However, this year our experience was not the same. The event staff was extremely friendly and helpful. The quality of the awards has changed - the placement plaques were much nicer to display in the studio, compared to cardboard stars this year. Also, teachers receiving jackets was such a wonderful thing and very appreciated. That was missed this year. Two of the three judge\'s critique\'s lacked, missing video critiques. Rule\'s have also changed this year with the modeling category and wasn\'t informed until after the event. I wish our experience had been the same this year.

This competition is one of the best out there and we have been attending it for over 20 years. It is simple to do all your entries on line and the office is great help if you need it. The judging is tough but fair with good constructive critiques. The staff is great and pleasant making the dancers feel comfortable while they are waiting back stage. Yes it may run a little long on occasion however, I love that it doesn\'t start until Friday afternoon and there is only one room of competition for the entire weekend. My kids absolutely love this competition and look forward to it each and every year!!!

I think this is probably the worst dance comp we have ever attended.

Their nationals were quite disappointing for the soloists. DO NOT DO THIS NATIONAL COMP IF YOUR KID IS IN MUSICAL THEATER. They lumped multiple categories together, including musical theater, which was one of the biggest categories. My child scored a platinum and didn\'t even place b/c it was in with Acro, Ballet, and I believe even hip hop and they didn\'t even do a TOP 10 for \"OPEN\" They also placed my friends daughter in Lyrical when it was a Jazz solo! Also, a platinum award was a ribbon...at nationals...a ribbon, it would have at least been a pin. I haven\'t had any issues with Star Systems until their nationals. Loved the venue and all but so upset with the awards ceremony.

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We tried it again after a couple of years, and it has downhill from then and that took something because it was not great to begin with. Just awful. Save your time and money.

This competition has the longest and most annoying awards I\'ve ever been to! They also, have really late awards on Sunday night. The judging at this competition is tough but fair and there is also, always a lot of great competition there. I would give this competition 4 stars if the awards were not super long.

Enjoy this competition. Great awards. Loads of trophies given. Not just 2 cent pins. Parents and dancers feel they are getting their monies worth. Will def do it again!

Tried it again after a couple years. Sorry, it\'s still a hot mess, NEVER again.

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It was a mixed bag. The staff was awesome, friendly and funny. It ran late. Two reasons I noticed, it took over 30 seconds to get another dance on stage. Add that to hundreds of dances and that is a lot of time. It wasn\'t because dancers weren\'t ready, they were in the wings. Awards could be shortened by not announcing that a dancer won a category when they were the only ones in it. It happened for approx 50% of the dances. Waste of time and trophies. Kids know they didn\'t really win anything. I thought the overalls were pretty accurate. I thank you for having a judge with a tap background! I did find the adjudications odd. I understand that you want a platinum to be earned. I like that. And very few were given. What I don\'t understand is the point spread. Platinum has a 20 point spread but EHG only has a ten point spread. Approx 80-90% of dances got an EHG. I find it hard to believe that almost every dance that weekend fell into that tiny ten point range. Not sure we would return. Ended by 7 ish on Saturday but ended at 10:30 on Sunday. Way too late on a school night. The scheduler should have switched days or added dances to Saturday night.

Judging was appropriate & tough, less than 20% of routines received platinum. There are no judges/special awards. It’s surprising how many dancers were disappointed by this. The dancers like specials and prefer pins over ribbons; although the trophies and the medals awarded to s/d/t were nice. The sound system: so-so; the lighting: flat white light; the announcer: clear spoken but uninspiring; backstage staff: friendly but other circuits are better at keeping wings cleared; video screen was small and showed only what was on stage (we have been to competitions that include the # on the screen and have screens in the lobby as well). Overall, the dancers enjoyed the weekend. With a bit more attention to detail, this competition could rank among the top tier.

Staff attempted to help and were friendly enough. Had problems getting into building to unload prop. The doors were locked even after speaking to staff. There is an auditorium for use in this venue but it may have been rented for something else this particular weekend. Dancers had a temporary stage which is ok but the only dressing areas were curtained areas on either side of stage. When groups and dream duffels crowded in, personal space was almost nonexistent. Little space was available for run through prior to taking the stage. A few overall placements left us scratching our heads. Emcee was difficult to understand most of the time. A huge irk....NO personal photography! No pictures allowed during awards! The photography company took pictures and want you to purchase theirs which were quite expensive. Not the worst experience but would not be disappointed if we do not return next year.

Thank you Marcy Tuttle for such a fantastic well run event , this is the first time I have been to a competition that promotes Ballet and how wonderful to share the stage with so many fantastic studios in Chicago who set the barre so high , the judges were fantastic they were interested and animated and the dancers felt totally at ease , listening to my critiques which were very positive their dance education and knowledge was evident . Staff couldn\'t have been nicer and couldn\'t do enough to keep us teachers happy , awards went smooth and fast and I love the way Marcy brings up the Top 5 groups - they split down the center and then starting back to front they lined up the entire group and that way everyone dancing was acknowledged . My parents loved that Platinums were not just handed out and they called this competition \" A Class Act \" Highly recommend -

We recently attended the Pittsburgh regional event. We throughly enjoyed ourselves. I personally thought the staff was very helpful and friendly. The lady at the sales table was so nice to the kids. And as for the director Casey Tuttle I felt like he really took time to get the kids pumped about the awards they were about to get and he just seemed to genuinely care about them.

Star Systems is and has always been a Class Act!! Runs smoothly and on time at every regional we have ever attended, and we attend multiple cities! The judging is right on point and critiques are very helpful and enjoyable to listen to. Marcy Tuttle and her staff are accommodating and approachable even during the very busy shows. We have attended their Myrtle Beach Nationals a few times and always have an amazing time there. The venue is top notch for a national finals. I would highly recommend trying their regional and national events!

very well run! Thought the staff was very easy to deal with and friendly.

We attended this competition in Pittsburgh, Pa this year and my daughter and I say it\'s the best one we\'ve been to all year. We have attended this competition before but we missed a year and we were so excited to be back. The staff was amazing, they made it so much fun for all the kids and parents. My daughter said she loved how much fun they made it backstage for all the dancers waiting to perform. This is by far the most professionally run competition we\'ve ever attended. They awards ceremony went so smoothly and it was fun. Thank you again to ALL the staff for everything and for making every dancer feel special and important.

So sad to see a competition that was once so fun and fair turn into what it is now. They have not upgraded to electronic scoring and instead use paper and pencil. About 1/3 of our score sheets had scores erased and changed, so what we all thought was poor judging is now a very disappointing and upsetting feeling. When problems from our weekend were brought to their attention no response was given. Disgusted we made our parents spend their money here.

Star Sytems used to be on of our favorite dance competitions, but sadly, not this year. Competition ran very late after starting at 1pm on a Friday. This meant I had to take my daughter out of school and miss a day of work. Teen solo awards did not have any judges awards like the juniors did. They just seemed to want to get out of there. Judging was horrific and seemed very unfair. Girls that had weak technique, leaps and turns scored higher then girls with strong technique and performance. I saw dancers with feet not pointed, falling out of turns and weak leaps and they scored significantly higher then stronger dancers. Not sure what dancers the judges were looking at but I don\'t think it\'s what the audience saw. My daughter is a strong dancer and danced extremely well with solid technique and was scored lower then dancers with weak technique. Everyone was shaking their heads over the scoring. My daughter was devastated at the blatant unfairness of the scoring and was crushed. I understand judging can be very difficult and they see things we don\'t, but it needs to be fair. When studio directors and other parents are saying a dancer didn\'t deserve that low of a score, that should tell you something! I hope my studio doesn\'t want to go back next year!! How can dancers who score platinums at all other competitions dance even better then their platinum performances and only score a high gold??? Over booked and poorly planned. Awards ended at 11:30 and same girls needed to be back the next morning at 6:30 am. These are kids not professionals. After having to miss school on Friday for co p starting at 1pm. Awards on Sunday are at 10:45pm., with school 6 hours later. So disappointed this year. Speaking of judges, I have just been told by many parents saw the judges were on there phones throughout most of the competition. That\'s not what I call fair and honest judging.

I am extremely disappointed that this competition would start 10 year olds on a Friday at 11am. I value my child’s education and believe that school comes first.

Not the best, not the worst. Had a good experience. Critiques were helpful.

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We attended Star Systems regional competition this weekend in Houston, and we loved it!! It was a big weekend, the building had lighting issues , and Casey Tuttle and his entire staff were all so professional! My kids had a great time, judging was great, the show ran so smooth! We couldn\'t have asked for a better weekend! Thank you Star Systems for being A Class Act!!

We attended the Houston, TX regional over the weekend and I must say I have such respect for this competition. There was a problem with the venues lighting system that caused several delays. Several routines had to restart and there were many long pauses while waiting for the lights to come back on. The announcer kept us updated on what was happening and although he was frustrated he finished out the evening and awards with the same enthusiasm and energy as any other award ceremony. Our final awards didn\'t end until after midnight and the competition started at 7am. He started the awards by saying something like the dancers were so hot they burned up the lights! It was a perfect way to turn a negative into a positive. I\'ve been to other competitions where things have not gone right and the announcers totally let it affect them and the awards ceremony. You could just feel the energy and motivation was lost. Casey Tuttle kept it going and remained professional. The lighting issue was not Star System\'s fault. We went back on Sunday and there were no lighting issues, and the competition kept right on going! We love Star Systems and can\'t wait to keep going back!

We just returned from this event and I really hope we have attended for the last time. The judging was horrendous, every studio except two were scored extremely low. They awarded so many high gold medals that they actually ran out. Some kind of announcement was made about them not getting their shipment in time, yea ok. I would like to say, this is not sour grapes that our studio didn\'t win it all. I honestly feel the studio that did very much deserved what they were given. They were phenomenal and even had the judging been done in a fairer way they still would have won it all. I do believe, however, the other studio\'s were not judged fairly and many routines which should have been awarded elite high gold or platinum were instead given high gold and gold. The venue was good, except it was extremely hot, they did finally turn on the AC on the third day. I do wish however that they had offered some kind of vendor for food. They did have vending machines but since this is a middle school they were programmed to allow purchases only during certain times. If you didn\'t get to the machine during the programmed times you couldn\'t get a drink or snack. As always the Star System staff was friendly and the awards went quick.

I can finally sit with a clear mind and express my continuing and utter disappointment with this competition. For 5 years I\'ve attended and continue to be in awe of the poor judging during these events. I\'ve watched dancers fall, run off stage because they forgot their dance, blatantly mess up turns and jumps and be awarded adjudications much higher than dancers who not only performed but completed a clean routine without falling, messing up turns/jumps or running off stage. At this event I watched 2 dancers run off stage only to be allowed to perform again, a dancer who weeble wobbled and fell, receive higher adjudications than dancers who had seamless/ strong routines. Not only did they score higher but placed overall. Can you imagine that? It\'s not sour grapes just 5 years of watching this happen repeatedly. One year as judges critiques were reviewed all one judge did was complain about the costumes and say he didn\'t like it. I know at the end of the day it\'s a business but at what expense? It\'s hard I\'m sure for a child to watch these things happen, and try to understand how your clean routine was low balled and scored less than a routine with very blatant and obvious mistakes like the ones listed above. As this is a forum for reviews, I hope my review will not be edited, altered or deleted because it doesn\'t look favorably upon Star Systems. I certainly hope they look at this and realize that while those in the audience are not professionals we can certainly tell the difference between a piece riddled with mistakes and one where the mistakes are few and far between and only picked up by those who are selected to judge because of their alleged expertise. Stop discouraging dancers with your very questionable and shady judging and give awards based on merit and not favoritism of a particular look, studio or individual.

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My daughter participate this event for 7 years, it\'s a great experience.

My girls had fun at this one and they learned a lot from the critiques. Highly recommend!

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Will attend again this year!

Myrtle Nationals definitely did not disappoint!! Ran on time (in fact I believe early most days). Judging super fair and top notch industry judges!!!! Venue was perfect with plenty of dressing room space. Back stage staff so wonderful with the kids, easing all those back stage nerves and quick costume changes. The stage (oh that stage) absolutely GORGEOUS!! Opening number choreographed by amazing choreographers was a perfect way to open the final day of competition!! Can not wait to be back and do it all over again. A definite class act!!

Judging was fair. Didn\'t score routines higher to make everyone feel like they were a winner.. Like the consistent and honest scores.

This is always a good competition to attend. Our girls get good feedback from the different judges\' perspectives. The venue they hold the competition in is very good, large stage and auditorium. The dressing rooms here are temporary and first come, first serve, so a little bit difficult, but overall good. The awards run a little bit long, but they have many which is good.

There was nothing that really set this competition apart from all the others. Lightly attended. Good confidence builder. Ran on time. Judges gave out great special awards. That was highlight of the day.

Definitely not the worst one I have been to, but it was very unorganized and ran extremely late!! This year was our second time to go and would be fine if it was our last. The judging was very fair

Went for the first time this year. Really enjoyed it! Well run and judging seemed accurate.

I love star systems. The staff is super friendly & makes every studio big or small feel like their somebody. The backstage crew was so awesome & gave my kids lots of encouragement when they felt nervous. They complimented the kids & cheered them all on. I like the venue in charleston because we can walk to the mall between. The only change would be, cut people off after a certain number of routines. Start at 8am & finish by 9pm

Not my favorite, but definitely not the worst. Competition ran pretty late. :( Venue was not good...the school would not allow us to bring in any food at all. We could only eat what they were selling on site, which was extremely overpriced and provided very limited options. The school also would not give us any ice for an injured dancer. :( On a positive note, I thought that the judges were pretty good and the critiques were helpful, for the most part.

We just competed with Star Systems this past weekend, and they exceeded my expectations of how a dance comp should run!!! The judging was very fair, everything was very, VERY smooth! The staff was incredible, and very sweet and caring and our kids had a blast! The director was fun and pumped the kids up! We love Star Systems! And we will be returning !!!!

Liked some aspects of this competition, but agree with many of the reviews; more attention to detail is needed. Waited hours for awards and our section was never announced. The director was apologetic but the damage was done. As a business owner I understand, he relies on his staff. Mistakes are made because the awards are so rushed; but students and parents are unforgiving....and rightly so, we are a small studio and only attend a few competitions every year. This made it impossible for us to reconsider this competition. As a studio owner I have to consider both the student/parent experience and the instructor/choreographer experience. My instructors felt the feedback was uninspired. When we get solid, helpful, professional feedback we like to let the students hear what the judges had to say-even if they only reinforce what has been reviewed in class. Many competition circuits, including this one, do not ensure the quality of their judges feedback (an impressive bio does not necessarily equal quality commentary), possibly forgetting that, ultimately, the studio is their customer. If we don\'t get the whole package: fun weekend for all, pins (or something!) for the students, exciting awards ceremonies and quality judges feedback, we will not return....When we find Everything in a competition, we return year after year.

ABSOLUTLELY LOVE THIS COMP! What a great experience I had with overall placements in every dance I competed with. The judges were really friendly, fair and kind! This is my studios 4th year attending and we are surely going back. Plus, the pictures are so high quality!

LOVE LOVE LOVE Star Systems Talent!! What a wonderful weekend with the most amazing staff. One of the most caring and professional dance competitions out there today. We absolutely LOVE Marcy Tuttle and all her staff who continually set the standards high and provide a high quality and fair competition. This is one competition we will continue to be a part of and love everything about this program. Thank you Star Systems for being such a TOP NOTCH ORGANIZATION!! Keep Shining!!!!!

Would rate this competition zero stars if I could. Logistical nightmare. Staff who didn\'t really seem to care. Unacceptable gaps in flow due to poor scheduling--the gaps were numerous and extensive (10-15 minutes or more at times). Several numbers with the same kids from large studio scheduled back-to-back. Inconsiderate of others\' time. When staff sets the schedule and sees an obvious conflict based on names of group members, someone should correct it to avoid being so disrespectful of other entrees. . And if that\'s not possible, then they should manage the way that entrees are accepted more appropriately. Groups of girls who won overalll spots in 2 different category levels?

The staff was friendly. The competition schedule was pretty irritating. They had no choice but to go out of order because dances were put back to back. Having 8 year olds dance at 8am and again at 9pm...was a bit crazy. Scoring seemed fair, however, the comments did not validate their score. The scoring was strange...and made no sense. Don\'t think we will return. They did special awards one night then never again, my kids look forward to those. 1 judge repeated himself on every dance (they very little he said)...just not a fan.

The staff was really great and so pleasant but wow, these guys just let the big studio attending this event railroad them - they were no where close to following the schedule and we had no idea what was happening next. In one of our categories every other entry got to dance HOURS earlier which seems rather unfair. AND the judging was just so odd - at least for our solo - there was a 14 point difference between the top score and the lowest - how on earth can two people sitting next to each other - both apparently well qualified - see something so differently???

I have been going to dance competitions for 12 years. This competition set up was poorly thought out. They started the children dancing at 7 am and had them dancing until 10 with awards following. They kept them dancing until 10 PM on Sunday night leaving families who traveled driving late at night, and keeping kids out on a school night. They waited to have the title pageant late in the day on the third day of competition when the kids where tired out. They did nothing for fun with the kids. It was strictly a business like atmosphere. How many dances can we get into a weekend. Awards were so fast you cound not even understand what the announcer was saying. I am not sure how the judges could make an honest critique as they we not looking up and I even saw one texting on his cell phone!!

This comp was fun but there is certainly room to improve. There was a lot of down time at this competition and it all goes back to scheduling. Many studios had their dances scheduled back to back and when the company was approached about it, they said not to worry about it and to just go when your dance was ready. This created back ups back stage and many lags in the schedule. The judging was fair and the staff was very friendly. The awards were read VERY fast which was fine but it left those who are new to competition dance in the dust. There probably should have been one additional award ceremony on Saturday because dances that danced at noon had awards at 5:30. That is too long especially for petites. The venue was great although the Northwest Sport show was going on so the convention center was packed and parking was difficult. Its important to note though, the convention center is the right size venue for this comp. Overall, this comp had some struggles but the levels were accurate, the judging was fair, the venue was the right size, and the kids had fun. If our studio goes back that\'s fine, if not, I probably won\'t miss it.

We LOVE this competition. The scoring has been the fairest we have seen & the judges critiques are constructive. The backstage crew is amazing and fun to work with. Last year\'s judges were a tad bit better than this years. I will say there was a very picky judge who pointed out very minute nit picky details, but that\'s what we\'re there for I guess. The competition did get started late on Friday and tends to not run early in our city. We too did not get any special judge\'s awards at our ceremonies. Every competition is looking for something different. I feel this one is fair and I agree with the routines that win the overalls. Can\'t wait to go back again!

Bottom line: Scheduling is terrible. I would not choose to go back to this competition. I can\'t understand what their method or reasoning is to scheduling. 9y/o solos-18y/o solos don\'t need to be on the same night/same overall awards. They have too many levels groups combined for overall award sessions. I will admit their announcer was fast (sometimes too fast though) at reading out awards and kept award sessions moving. 9 year old soloists who took the stage at 3pm attended awards at 10:30pm on Friday. No special awards were given after the first award session (I went to the first 3 of the weekend - out of 5) Trophies were breaking all over the place. Emcee/sound engineer seemed like he had trouble running the equipment. Dancers were consistently waiting upwards of 60 seconds for their music to start. For solos/duets/trios they ran close to on time and stuck to the schedule. for groups they had to jump all over the schedule because groups of the same kids in different dances were scheduled too close together. ex: 1 team from my studio with 3 dances was scheduled as consecutive entries in the program. Again, I would not want to go back to this event. BEWARE: the photo/video company they use is EXPENSIVE. (Platoon)

This competition has been great (I went last night and im going all day tomorrow). I got a elite high gold and first overall in my division! The judges are so nice. The only thing is is that they gave me a sweatshirt but ut says top teacher! :( i wish i could get a new pne

Great comp free breakfast before 730am & master classes @ nationals

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This competition ran so late Friday night - we didn\'t get home until after midnight. They also combined large and lines and teens and seniors together. Would it be that much trouble to have separate overalls for these categories?

They were pretty much on schedule all day. The judges were really tuff on the dancers but it was all good. The awards ceremony went fast and greatly appreciate that so the competition could stay on schedule.

My daughter LOVES this competition. Our studio attended the nationals last year and had a blast.

Very poor competition - and I have been to many competitions and conventions over eight years. They ran late the whole weekend, culminating in a 10:45 finish on a Sunday night. The judging is very inconsistent and technique is definitely not the emphasis here. They combined competition of seniors and teens, so thirteen year-olds competed against eighteen year-olds. I would not recommend this competition. There are much better ones out there.

They ran on time and seemed very organized. Some of the numbers were moved around but worked out in our favor! I only wished that they did the photogenic all in one awards session and that their program book wasn\'t so expensive. Otherwise great comp!

Used to go to this competition every year including nationals, but they seem to be spread too thin now. Judging inconsistent.

Amazing competition, well organized & extremely positive environment for dancers of all ages!!!! Highly recommend star systems be part of your competition schedule!!!!!

Star Systems has always been a competition that I have enjoyed going to. Marcy Tuttle and her crew do an amazing job. I have never been to a competition that I didn\'t feel that the dances were not judged fairly. My daughter does not compete any more but if she did, I know that we would be going to a Star Systems competition. Keep up the good work!!

We\'ll run and organized and the staff is very friendly. Leaned on contemporary and lyrical and no other styles even made the top ten. Judges had nothing negative (all great, beautiful, wonderful) yet still scored low. Saw same boy do a solo in tap as age 15 and the next day do a solo and duet in lyrical as age 18. If I had to guess, he looked 18.

Not the best, felt unorganized. Before the competition teachers were expected to turn in their music, not unusual, but the music table was right in the front of the auditorium and could be turned in throughout the day right before your routine. Seems a little simpler to have it all turned in at once. At awards they called dances so fast that awards were mixed up. My dancer was called as a gold recipient and received that award but placed second in lineup, above high gold recipients. After calling they realized they had made a mixup and did send her the correct trophy and award. This makes me question if this happened to any of the other dances. I did like how with the judges critiques they provided a video and you could watch as you followed along with their voices and critiques.

Very fun to attend. Great atmosphere and very friendly people.

Tough scoring but a well-done competition. I wish they accepted independent entries. Enjoyed their regionals and nationals events.

Absolutely the best comp ever!! So fun to attend!! This is definitely one we will be attending!!

Ran late, but overall good experience. Would go back.

I\'m very pleased with this comp. My parents and students were all pleased, backstage managers were great! They ran on time, and judging was very fair! We will be returning to star systems, and can\'t wait to do so!

My daughter enjoyed the competition but our studio is still waiting on winnings. Nationals was in July and we haven\'t heard a thing on when to expect them... :(

Backstage managers were not helpful, and they ran VERY, VERY late. Had little ones dancing at nearly midnight. Not a good experience.