Bush Poetry Competition Organisers' Information  | ABPA Rules - Introduction  | Terminology and Definitions  | Categories  | Classes  | Poet's Brawl |   Yarn Spinning  | Closing Date | Written Competitions  | Performance Competitions  |  Championships

Championships - Australian Bush Poetry

STATE and NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS
All such competitions should carry the title:
(Name of the State OPEN BUSH POETRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
   or  NATIONAL AUSTRALIAN BUSH POETRY CHAMPIONSHIPS

Championships should be decided over at least three OPEN categories;
1. Classical  2. Contemporary (Modern Traditional) 3. Original.

Options are as set out below;

1. Classical                                                    OR           1. Classical
2. Modern Traditional (Contemporary)                               2. Modern Traditional
3. Original (Serious)                                                        3. Original
4. Original (Humorous) 

Entries will be accepted for individual classes but championship contenders must enter all classes.

Junior Classes may be added.   

Each of these sections should have separate prize-money.

A Written Championship Competition should be included in all State and National Championships, irrespective of author's State of address.
(Our writers are as important as our performers)

Written competitions should be Open - Separate classes for Humorous and Serious are acceptable. The Championship will be awarded to the highest scoring entry.

OVERALL CHAMPION
The Overall Male and Female Champion will be decided from aggregate points gained over all combined male and female Open categories (1 to 4 above), including Finals if held. Finals are not necessary.

STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS
State Championships should be open to all competitors, the winner being declared the (Name of State) Open Champion Bush Poet.
The Highest placed resident of such state, Male and Female, should be recognized and/or awarded.

YARN-SPINNING competitions can be held in conjunction with the State and National Titles but will not influence the Overall Champion results.

NOTE: The foregoing format caters for all presenters of bush poetry.
Opportunity exists for quality reciters who are non-writers to win a category.
The OVERALL TITLE can only be won by someone who writes as well as recites.

OFFENSIVE MATERIAL and or objectionable material will not be accepted and should be marked as such by the adjudicators and NO SCORE given.

Conduct of Competitions. Organisations adopting these rules will have the ABPA Inc. approval to publish the following notation on their competition advertisements and forms.
‘Conducted under the AUSPICES of the ABPA Inc.’

TIE-BREAKERS. In the event of equal scores, scrutineers shall refer to the Judges Sheets of the ‘tied entrants’ and determine the winner from the highest scores recorded for the Start, the Body and the Conclusion categories on these judging sheets.

TIME-KEEPING. Time commences from when the entrant begins to speak. The Time Keeper must accurately time all contestants — indicating the time limit has been reached by some soft audible means and repeat the sound at fifteen (15) second intervals.

ASSESSMENT of PERFORMANCES. Performances will be assessed to a maximum of 100 points per each of the criteria on the Assessment sheet. (The high scoring technique on the Assessment Sheet greatly assists in eliminating ties)

Penalties for overtime are to be deducted at the rate of 5 points for every 15 seconds or part thereof. Over time should be advised by the time-keeper to the scrutineers who can make the necessary deductions from the performer’s aggregate of points for that poem.

Scrutineers should collate judges sheets, total the scores, and present them for confirmation to a second authority.
Accuracy of score totals is absolutely necessary. When errors are found, they must be corrected even if results have already been declared and prizes distributed. Such errors must be publicly announced and the rightful winners or place getters given their correct prizes.

Duties of Compere/MC. The compere’s duties are to announce the events proceedings and to fill in where necessary with suitable material without wasting undue time.
The compere should only introduce performers by name and along with some geographical information.
The compere should not refer to the competitors past successes, his or her standing in the ABPA or give other details which may unduly prejudice juges.
In announcing presentations, the winners names should be given in reverse order. i.e. 3rd, 2nd, 1st., including name of the poem and the author as performed by each.

STATE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS.
States are encouraged to conduct their own State Championships using the ABPA approved rules.

AUSTRALIAN BUSH POETRY CHAMPIONSHIPS
The ABPA Inc. is the only organisation entitled to use the name ‘Australian Bush Poetry Championships’ or ‘Australian Bush Poetry State Open Championships’ in which the National or State Champion Poets (Male, Female and Junior) are chosen.

Approval for the holding of State and National Bush Poetry Championships is declared at the Annual General Meeting of the Association held in January each year or at a later date if none have been allocated.
Applications for such events should be directed to the Secretary of the ABPA Inc.
Notices regarding the championships and application details are placed in the ABPA Inc. Newsletter.

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