Dance Competition Packing List: 15 Must-Haves You'll Thank Us For

Competition season can seem a bit overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. From first time competition families to our veterans, there is always room to learn tricks and tips for packing smart so that you can set yourself and your dancer up for a successful, stress-free competition weekend. Whether you are just starting out or looking to add to your dance competition packing list, here are 15 must-haves that you may find to be useful and appreciated especially going into your first year of competition dance.

1. Costume Rolling Duffle Bag/Garment Bags

   When deciding on how you want to pack and travel with your costumes, there are a few important factors to consider. Costumes should be packed neatly, and separately so that each piece and accessory that belongs to that specific dance can stay together and organized. Garment bags should be used to house each dance’s costume, and you will appreciate the ease of seeing everything all in one place. You would want to purchase bags that have zippered compartments to help with this.

   Costumes have been packed and organized, and shoes have been accounted for, but how will you travel with them? Costume rolling duffle bags are a great solution. These bags are designed specifically with dancers in mind. They house a collapsable garment rack that you put together right inside the bag itself to hang your costumes. This is helpful to make sure your costumes can settle before putting them on and organize them in the order of your dances.  Not to mention, the wheels on these bags make transferring from the house to the car, and car to the venue a breeze. There are many brands and sizes available on the market. Look for the best option to suit your dancer’s needs, with growth in mind. Three brands I suggest are Ovation Gear, Glam’r Gear, and Dream Duffle.

2. Costumes, Shoes, and Warm Up/Awards Gear

   Consider making yourself a separate checklist of all the costume items you need to bring, appropriate shoes, and warm up/awards attire. Often, our costumes have multiple pieces that are not replaceable on a competition weekend.

3. Proper Under Garments

   Wearing the proper under garments will not only help you look professional, but make sure you feel confident. Girls should wear nude/skin tone supportive bras with clear straps and nude/skin tone underwear. Packing an extra set of clear straps would be an excellent idea, as they can snap under the rush of quick changes. Boys should wear solid white or light-colored underwear as well. Prints can easily be seen costumes under stage lights.

4. Makeup and Accessory Organizer

   You have purchased the required makeup, makeup prep and applicators, gems, hair care and tools. Now it’s time to organize it all. I have used the same system to organize all my dancer’s hair, makeup, and accessories for over 11 years. A veteran competitive dance mom before me showed me this neat idea, and I have never swayed since. I purchased a soft sided tackle box bag with a strap, that included 4 hard plastic cases inside with dividers. These cases come with snap closures, and movable dividers to suit your needs. I typically only use 3 of the 4 boxes and label them as such: Makeup, Hair/Accessories, and Miscellaneous. Some families choose to use a hard sided, expanding tackle box instead. I have even seen some families use a hanging foldable toiletry travel bag as well. You can find any of these options at stores like Walmart, Target, Bass Pro, and of course Amazon. The next few Items I suggest, you can easily store right inside your organizer.

5. Makeup, Gems, Lashes

   Competition days are often long. To make the required makeup last all day and into the night, you may want to use a primer. I find using both a face primer and an eye shadow primer is helpful. The best way to apply the gems to the face is by pre-making gem clusters on parchment paper using clear lash glue. Once dried, you simply peel the cluster off the paper and apply to the corner of the eye with additional lash glue. A little goes a long way. This would be the same glue you would use to apply your dancer’s lashes with.

6. Hair Care

   You may be wondering about where to start stocking your dancer’s hair care. Hair colored hair ties and hair nets is a great place to start. You also want to consider putting both flat bobby pins as well as “U” shaped hair pins in your kit as well. I find the “U” shaped pins are best for keeping a bun secure and in place, while the flat bobby pins are best as securing hair pieces down. Hair spray and gel are necessary items to pack. The brand and type you purchase will depend on your own dancer’s needs. You want to consider the fact that whatever products you use should keep dancers hair completely slicked back with no fly-aways or frizz. I personally love the Got2Be line sold in most stores.

7. Sewing Kit

   Every year before the first competition of the season, I go through my sewing kit. I make sure I have the proper thread colors to coordinate with this year’s costumes, all of my needles are accounted for, small scissors, safety pins, and even stock the kit with fast drying fabric glue. These items are just to name a few.  Let’s face it, snags, rips, popped buttons or off-track zippers can happen. Having your kit stocked will help you quickly find a solution. You may not be super confident in your sewing skills, but there is sure to be another parent on the team willing to help you out.

8. Medical Kit

   Keeping a small medical kit inside your organizer is a great idea.  This does not need to be an elaborate first aid kit, but you will find keeping some supplies on hand to be useful overall.
   

   Here are just a few items I stock in my medical kit:

   - band-aids

   - ointment

   - sanitizer

   - over the counter pain/fever medication like Tylenol (for both my dancer and me)

   - allergy medicine

   - Tiger Balm or Bio Freeze

   - flesh colored kinesiology tape

   - instant cold ice pack

   - feminine hygiene products if necessary

9. Oops! Items

   You arrived at the venue, and oops! You just realized you dancer is still wearing the chipped hot pink nail polish you applied weeks ago. Wearing nail polish of any kind on stage, does not give off a clean professional look. Keeping a bottle of remover, and some cotton balls or pre-soaked acetone pads in your miscellaneous kit is helpful for the just in case moments.
   

   You may want to consider sticking some makeup remover wipes, deodorant, and a Tide-To-Go stick in your “Oops! Bag”, as well.

10. Portable Charger

    Finding an outlet at a venue can be challenging. The last thing you want is your phone to die when a cute photo opportunity arises of your dancer beaming with joy when they greet you after they just nailed their performance. Having a portable charger to keep your phone going, will make sure you are ready.

11. Water Bottles

    Whether you choose to bring a reusable water bottle, or plastic water bottles, you want to make sure your dancer is and stays properly hydrated.

12. Snacks, Meals, and Hydration

    The snacks you choose to pack should have a few things in mind. Fuel, energy, fulfillment, nutrition. Granola bars, fruit, veggies, cheese, meats, and crackers are a great start. Throwing in a sweet treat or two will also help sustain your dancer and boost some moods. I know gummy bears are a team favorite! Snacks aren’t meant to be a meal replacement, but rather a quick in between option for busy competition days. Whether you choose to pack a lunch or dinner, or use DoorDash, make sure you and your dancer are eating to stay fueled. It is also very important to have your dancer stay hydrated. Water is fantastic, but sometimes a boost of electrolytes is needed. Gatorade, Powerade, Body Armor, or even Liquid IV are great options.

13. Blanket

    I have been grateful for packing small blanket with me more times than I can count. You can use it as a picnic blanket to snack on the floor in a school hallway or curl up under it in an air-conditioned auditorium. A blanket is something I don’t ever want to be without.

14. Pens and Highlighters

    Some parents can choose to buy a program at the merch table. The program has the entire competitions schedule in it. You may find it helpful to highlight all the routines your dancer is in, and the routines from our studio. This will help you stay on track of where we are in the competition.  You may also want to carry a pen write down any of those special awards, or recognitions our studio receives. It is so hard to remember all that is being announced, especially at the last awards session of the night.

15. Things to Occupy Time

    You may find there are long breaks between routines. Your dancer may get boosts of energy they should reserve for their next dance, or you may just feel they just need a breather. Whatever the case may be, packing things like a book, air pods/headphones, small crafts, or coloring books, or even a tablet is helpful.

A dance competition packing list will help you feel ready, organized, and relaxed so you that you can enjoy watching your dancer showcase their hard work.

If you’re a Severna Park-area family looking for a positive, supportive studio that prepares dancers for success both on and off the stage, Creative Force Dance Center would love to welcome you. Contact us to learn more or schedule a trial class!