FEBRUARY 9 - MARCH 16, 2023
|
CONTEST
SPECIFICS:
Beginning
Thursday, February 9, 2023, Margarita Republic sponsored a Karaoke
contest in search of the best talent in The Villages.
Five
weeks of qualifying rounds ran from February 9
- March 09, 2023.
The
contest FINALS were held on Thursday, March 16, 2023
The
contest took place at Margarita Republic in Spanish Springs during
the weekly Alan Ross Karaoke Roadshow.
The
Karaoke shows begin at 8:00pm every Thursday night and the contest
began at 9:00pm
Contestants
were also the judges - Each contestant was given a score sheet
and they scored each other.
Contestants
were scored as follows:
1-10 points for Song Choice
- Song Choice is defined as how
well the chosen song suits that person.
1-10 points for Stage
Presence
- Stage Presence is defined as
how well the contestant commands the stage and people's attention.
1-20 points for Vocal
Talent
- Vocal Talent is defined simply
as how well the person can sing; quality of voice.
Since
Song Choice & Stage Presence are as important as vocal talent, it
is
very possible for the best singer
to lose to a better performer.
Contestants should try to do more than just stand and sing.
In
each qualifying week, after all Contestants had sung and score sheets
totaled, the three contestants
with the highest scores became finalists and qualified to sing in
the FINALS on March 16th.
3
finalists from each of the 5 weeks of qualifying equals 15 contestants
in the FINALS on March 16.
For
the FINALS, contestants again scored each other and judging was
the same as during the qualifying rounds.
After
all 15 finalists had sung, score sheets were collected, analyzed
and totaled.
There
was only one Grand Prize of $500 and it was awarded to the finalist
with the highest score on March 16th, 2023.
F.A.Q.
Q: Is there an entrance fee?
A:
There is no cost for participants to become contestants.
However, we want to remind everyone that Margarita Republic can only
sponser this event if people are spending money in their
establishment. A business must sell its wares to stay in business
so the kitchen and bar will be open and we highly recommend everyone
order food and drinks if we want to make this a success.
Q: What if I can't get there before
8:30 to sign up?
A: Sadly, because
there is limited time during each show to accomodate all the
contestants, if you can't arrive before 8:30, you will NOT be allowed
to join that night's competition. You will be more than welcome
to try again the following week but 8:30 is a hard cut-off.
Q: What songs can I sing?
A:
Alan Ross has song books listing tens of thousands of songs that are
available in his song library for you to choose from. We will not
restrict any singer's choice except in the case of songs with overt
vulararity or obscenity.
Q: Do I have to use the songs from the Alan
Ross song book?
A:
No. While the Alan Ross song library will be available,
contestants are welcome to bring their own music. Music must be
in MP3+G or ZIP format and on a thumb drive. If your music is on
a CD, please put it on a thumb drive to give to Alan Ross to load for
you. CDs will not be accepted.
Q: Why can't I use my CD?
A:
This is strictly a timing issue. It takes too long to load a song
from a CD and with the possibility of 15 singers per night, there
wouldn't be enough time before the show has to begin. Thumb
drives are much quicker. Songs on CD cannot be loaded after the
show begins.
Q: Can I play an instrument?
A:
We are not set up to accomodate instruments. This will be
strictly a Karaoke contest, but you are welcome to use any props or
costumes.
Q: If I don't qualify, can I try again next
week?
A:
Absolutely! We are expecting to have some really great talent, so
not everyone will be able to qualify on the first night. We can
only take the top three each week, so everyone is welcome to come back
and try to qualify again each week.
Q: How is the Judging done?
A: The contestants
will judge each other. For specifics on the judging process go to
http://www.alanrossobx.com/Judging.html
Q: Are duets allowed?
A:
Not in this contest. There may be a later contest for duos, but
this contest is for solo singers only.
Q: Can I bring all my friends to root for
me?
A:
Absolutely! The more the merrier! Just know that the
winners aren't chosen from audience applause, so no amount of cheering
will help your scores.
Q: Are professional singers allowed to
enter?
A:
The short answer is, 'Yes.' This contest is open to everyone and
there are a couple of reasons for that:
1) We have no way of knowing who may or may not be a
"professional" singer.
2) Not all "professional" singers are as talented as
some of our amateur singers.
3) The goal is to have several weeks of amazing
talent and "professionals" add to that experience.
Realistically, professional singers have more to lose than the amateur
singers in terms of reputation, so most avoid competitions anyway.
Q: What suggestions do you have for a
better performance?
A:
This is a great question!
1) Choose a song you know forward and backward and
don't even need the words for. The better you know a song, the
better you can perform it.
2) Sing with feeling. If the song means
something to you, share that feeling with the audience for the best
performance.
3) Make eye contact. When you connect with the
audience, they can better feel what you feel.
4) Keep it short. In a contest, no matter how
great a singer you are, after three minutes, people are just waiting
for it to end.
5) Avoid depressing or melancholy songs. Keep
song choices light and lively. If you're happy singing, people
will be happy listening.
Q: You know my voice, can you suggest a
song for me to sing?
A:
No. In the interest of fairness, your show host must remain out
of all song choice decisions. The host may have inside
information about which songs a person could absolutely kill, but since
song choice is an important factor in the competition, we must remain
neutral.
