About Golden Heights Calisthenics Club
Dance to your own rhythm.
Golden Heights Calisthenics Club's mission is to provide students of all ages the opportunity to grow and excel in their calisthenics and dance tuition. Golden Heights strives to give each individual student the highest quality of coaching, while promoting unity through diversity. We support all students to achieve their potential in a fun and safe environment.
Our coaches are all qualified Level One coaches, and continually train to give our students the highest quality coaching available. We train all students, from elite to recreational level. There is something for everyone at GHCC.
Calisthenics Items
Calisthenics participants perform a number of different items at each competition. All competitors from Sub-Juniors and above compete the 'Core Items' each year: Figure March, Club Swinging, Free Exercises, Rod Exercises.
The remaining items are called our “Fancy Items” and are usually highly costumed, theme based and favoured by most calisthenics participants. Not all of these items are performed every year or by every age group.
March
Correct deportment is essential in Figure March as the team strives to create many intricate formations and patterns. Uniformity of style is another fundamental requirement as rhythm and precision within the team must be identical. As with all Calisthenics items, teamwork is important.
Aesthetic
Aesthetic is a ballet influenced item which displays the team’s ability to interpret music and perform with grace and elegance. It shows soft and flowing movements, enabling facial and body expressions to be shown.
Character Folk
Our Character Folks tell amazing stories from all around the world! Think fairy tales, fables, legends and mythology. Students learn stories and portray these through dance. There is a lot of acting in these routines, which makes them a fan favourite!
Clubs
Club Swinging is considered to be the hardest item to achieve correctly. It involves swinging clubs smoothly, with perfect rhythm, timing and planing. This item has become more challenging over time with team members often being required to move through formations and execute dance steps while performing intricate swings.
Rhythmical Aesthetic
Rhythmical Aesthetic is very similar to Aesthetic, but must include a balance between elevated and stationary movements. More dynamic movement is required in Rhythmical Aesthetic.
Song and Action
Song and Action is primarily performed by the younger age groups. A story is told through song, with accompanying actions/movements to develop coordination and learn how to juggle two pieces of information at once! These are always the cutest items on stage.
Exercises
Free Exercises involves a series of strong movements showing flexibility, control and uniformity of rhythm. These fast paced routines test stamina and often display imaginative choreography and include gymnastic style movements. Teamwork, equality in execution and control are important to this item. Team members perform with 'free arms' that is, holding no apparatus.
Calisthenics Revue
Calisthenics Revue is the culmination of all aspects of calisthenics! Coaches get free reign to create a routine that could be anything they wanted! Apparatus, marching, free exercises, singing, acting, and aesthetic movements are all welcome here. These are often the most entertaining and fun items to watch, as the students LOVE the creativity that goes along with these productions!
Song and Dance
Song and Dance is the 'grown up' version of Song and Action, where singing is required for 50% of the routine. The dance moves are more intricate, and correct vocal and dance technique must be shown to be successful! This one is always fun for the 'triple threats' in our cali community!
Rods
A Rods routine has the same key elements of precision and uniformity as Free Exercises and Figure March. The quick and constant manipulation of the rod combined with footwork and flexibility demonstrate high levels of co-ordination, and make this item exciting to watch.
Dance/Rods
A South Australian created item, Dance/Rods blends two separate items into one! Tricky rod apparatus work is blended with fancy footwork, and creativity is needed to organise rods coming on and off the stage at various times throughout the routine.
Dance Arrangement
This item is a favourite among many participants. Dance Arrangement gives the team the freedom to perform any dance style they would like - including jazz, tap, lyrical, contemporary and more! The only limit? No singing allowed!
Individual Items
Calisthenics is predominantly a team sport and the main focus is always on the team performance, however team members can also compete individually as soloists or in a Calisthenic Duo. Solos and Duos are a great way to develop confidence and performance skills as well as extending the skills learnt in team items.
In order to be eligible to compete in solos, team members are required to pass the relevant pupil skills exam for their age. Pupil skill levels required for graceful girl, solo and duo competitions are based on the competitor's age as at 31st December in the year of competition.
Graceful Solo
Graceful solos are often inspired by ballet and contemporary dance. They require elegance, poise, strong dance technique and interpretation. Graceful solos combine elements of the Aesthetic and Rhythmic items.
Calisthenics Solo
The Calisthenic Solo is performed by one girl and must contain half dance and half physical movements. The routine is often centred around a theme and is tailored to show off the strongest aspects of a student's abilities.
Calisthenics Duo
Calisthenic Duo is performed by a pair of students. Similar to a calisthenic solo, it must contain half dance and half physical movements, whilst also containing partner work. It is a fun way to perform on stage with a close friend, outside of team work.