Young Performer Awards Competition 2026

• The first round comprises adjudicated events in each genre, where a Panel of Adjudicators nominate participants to proceed to the quarter final round. 
• The quarter finals take on a similar format: the Panel of Adjudicators for each genre will select 15 – 20 participants/groups that will then compete in one of the four semi-final rounds.
• The 4 semi-final rounds of the Young Performer Awards competition are presented in concert format at a theatre. Each concert is dedicated to a genre (classical and contemporary music, dance and drama). The best participants in each genre, as determined by the four Adjudicator Panels, are then invited to compete in the final round. 
• In the final round, a panel of experts, representative of the different genres, finally decides on the winners of the Gold, Silver and Bronze medals. 

• Diploma recipients in the National Eisteddfod 2025 have already qualified to enter the Young Performer Awards Competition 2026.
• Any participant who received a diploma or similar award in any other eisteddfods or similar events during 2025 may also qualify. (An achievement of 90%+ or diploma level is required, and proof of this  achievement should be submitted with the entry.)
• For aspiring participants who did not participate in any eisteddfod event in the past year, the NEA has created a Preliminary Qualifying Round as an alternative opportunity to qualify to enter this competition. This option is available for a limited period only. Read more about this lower down on this page.

• All the entries for live and video-recorded performances will be adjudicated during the First Round of the competition between 9 – 20 March 2026.
• The dates for the Quarter Final Rounds are 23 – 26 March 2026.
• The four Semi-final rounds will be presented at the Roodepoort Theatre on 7 and 8 May 2026.
• The Final round will be presented at the Roodepoort Theatre on Sunday, 10 May 2026.

More details in this regard are provided further down the page.

(1) Applicable to all participants in the annual National Eisteddfod of South Africa®:

Diploma recipients in the National Eisteddfod 2025 have, as determined by their province of residence, ONE or TWO options available for participating in the FIRST and SECOND ROUNDS:

Participants in the National Eisteddfod of 2026 have the following benefits:

• Participants may submit their entries ONLINE at a lower entry fee.
• Participants may request a personalized “hard copy” of the entry form to submit their entries in a hard copy format (a higher entry fee is charged for hard copy entries)
• Individual participants are no longer limited to only the “approved” items as presented at the Eisteddfod in 2025:
  • Similar items have been grouped to create new broader categories that require a similar “skill set” (for example: Lyrical Poetry, Narrative Poetry, Free Verse Poetry, etc. have been grouped in a “Poetry Category“).
  • This approach now opens up new opportunities for the serious performer: If you have received a diploma award for any one item in this category, you may now enter any number of the other items in the same category. For example,  if you only qualified with your performance of a narrative poem, you may now also enter a lyrical poem and/or free verse and/or another narrative poem in the same category.
  • The rationale for this approach is that achievement at the diploma level in any category confirms that the participant has acquired the higher skills level required in the given category. This now provides an opportunity to present additional items within the “approved” skill set and is also an incentive for the participant to spread his/her wings.
  • When submitting entries ONLINE, participants will notice that their approved entries include the item(s) for which they received diplomas, as well as all the other available items in the same category that they now may enter. In addition, the items now also reflect their current grades (except for the open section).

(2) Applicable to participants in all other festivals/events (in other words, someone who didn’t participate in last year’s National Eisteddfod events):

Diploma recipients in other festivals have, as determined by their province of residence, ONE or TWO options available for participating in the FIRST and SECOND ROUNDS:

• Participants from other eisteddfods can only submit entries by completing the required ENTRY FORM (“hard copy format”).
• The proof of payment of the applicable fee should be submitted with the entry.
• A copy of the certificate/document confirming the achievement in another festival should be included with the entry
• Download the hard copy entry form for participants from other festivals HERE

The reason for this allowance is the vast distance between Johannesburg and many other provinces. This allowance will enable participants from other remote provinces to continue participating without the high cost of travelling to Gauteng. In this instance, the new video recordings should reach the NEA Office by 2 March 2026.  

Participants from these provinces who are subsequently selected for the Quarter Final Round will also have the option to submit a newly recorded video performance for adjudication in that round. They may also opt to perform live.

IMPORTANT: All participants selected for participation in the Semi-final and Final Rounds are required to perform LIVE. No video recordings are allowed for the Semi- and Final rounds.

IMPORTANT:

Participants should closely follow the requirements as outlined in the Helpfile for video entries. 

All video-recorded performances must be submitted in any of the following formats:

• A link to a video recorded performances on YouTube or Google Drive  (do not submit with WeTransfer or Dropbox)
• A video recorded performance on a flash disk
• The deadline for submission of video-recorded performances for adjudication in the First Round is 2 March 2026.

• All prepared and unprepared reading items.
• All unprepared and improvised acting categories, e.g. unprepared storytelling, theatre sports, creative advert, improvisation and unprepared mime.
• One-act plays and workshop productions
• Unprepared public speaking
• Debating and group public speaking.
• All Novice music items
• Elementary music items (Gr. R – 6)

The Preliminary Qualifying Round offers anyone who currently does not qualify for the Young Performer Awards Competition the opportunity to be eligible by receiving a diploma award. For this purpose, an aspiring participant must submit an ONLINE VIDEO entry as if it were submitted for Eisteddfod 2025. The closing date for these entries is 6 February 2026, and proof of payment of the non-refundable special entry fee of R200.00 must be submitted with this entry. Don’t hesitate to get in touch with the NEA Office for more information in this regard or email cindy@eisteddfod.co.za.

Preliminary Qualifying Round

Once the video entries have been received (with proof of payment), all Preliminary Qualifying Round videos will be submitted to members of the NEA Adjudicators’ Forum for adjudication. The outcome of this adjudication will be communicated by e-mail to all participants in this round not later than 13 February 2026 to allow successful participants to enter for the Young Performer Awards Competition before any of the closing dates for live or video entries. (Kindly refer to ” Procedure for submitting an entry for the Preliminary Qualifying Round” below for more information).

Procedure for submitting an entry for the Preliminary Qualifying Round:

• Open the Login/Register page
  Register on the National Eisteddfod ONLINE ENTRY platform if you have not done so before.
  • Click Register Online to register
  • At the end of the registration process you will be provided with a User Code and Password that should be noted for future use.
    (Should you lose this information, please email register@eisteddfod.co.za and provide the Name that you used in the registration process. (Do NOT submit duplicate registrations.) 
  • For help with the how, click here.
• Log in to your existing or new Online Profile.
  • Click on the Login button to log in
  • Enter the User Code and Password (received at the end of the registration process) as well as your email address in the boxes as provided on the Login form
  • For help with Login click here.
  • Click Login to continue.
• Continue to submit your entry ONLINE.
• For more information about submitting entries online, click here.
• Record your performance on video and submit your video for adjudication by following the Guidelines and requirements for Video Recorded Entries
• Should you get stuck or need further assistance, please call the NEA Office on 011 886 6005 (office hours). Alternatively, please email admin@eisteddfod.co.za with more information about your query.

How to enter: Help file for Preliminary Qualifying Round  (Current dates and amounts will differ from dates and amounts as provided in this help file. These dates are for illustrative purposes only.)

• number of participants,
• date of entry
• format of submission (Online or in Hard copy format), and
• mode of presentation (Live Performance or Video Recorded Performance).

Important: Entry fees are not refundable and should be submitted BEFORE the cut-off date for the particular entry (ONLINE or HARD COPY). In order words, an “Early Bird” entry should be paid before the deadline, else the entry will be cancelled or the higher fees according to the NEXT CUT-OFF date will be charged.

Closing date for entries and entry fees for 2026

 Applicable to all participants in the National Eisteddfod of South Africa 2025:

Live performances in the 23rd Young Performer Awards Competition will be scheduled on dates and venues from 9 March until 10 May 2026:

Provisional dates & possible venues: First Round: 9 March – 20 March 2026

• Roodepoort Basement Theatre (100 Christiaan de Wet Rd, Florida Park, Roodepoort) (Classical & Contemporary Music, Speech & Drama)
• Linden Theatre (44 5th St, Linden, Randburg, 2104) (Crossover & Contemporary Music, Speech & Drama)
• Domus Dei Randburg Suid (30 Jean Rd, Blairgowrie, Randburg, 2194) (Classical Music, Speech & Drama; Dance (individual and small group items)
• NG Kerk Roodekrans (7 Azalea Avenue, Roodekrans, Roodepoort) (Classical Music, Speech & Drama)

Combined First Round and Quarter Final Round for all DANCE items and LARGE GROUPS (Music & drama): Saturday 13 – 14 March 2026

• Roodepoort Theatre (100 Christiaan de Wet Rd, Florida Park, Roodepoort, 1709)

Quarter Final Rounds: 23  – 26 March 2026

• Roodpoort Theatre (Basement Theatre) (Classical, Crossover & Contemporary Music; Speech & Drama)

Semi Final Rounds: 7 – 8 May 2026

Roodepoort Theatre (100 Christiaan de Wet Rd, Florida Park, Roodepoort, 1709)

Final breakdown of genres:

• 7 May 15:00 – 17:00 Semi-final 1 (Dance)
• 7 May 19:00 – 21:00 Semi-final 2 (Contemporary Music)
• 10 May 15:00 – 17:00 Semi-final 3 (Drama)
• 10 May 19:00 – 22:00 Semi-final 4 (Classical & Crossover Music)

Final Round: 

11 May 2025 – 15:00: Roodepoort Theatre (100 Christiaan de Wet Rd, Florida Park, Roodepoort, 1709)

To provide for possible challenges, participants may submit a special request pertaining to availability in advance and before the closing date for normal entries on 27 February 2026 to admin@eisteddfod.co.za.
We will attempt to accommodate all requests submitted in advance, but please note that given the particular demands of this competition, we cannot give any guarantee that we will be able to accommodate all requests. 

In order to facilitate the adjudication process, events are scheduled according to the participant’s grade (e.g. it does not make sense to schedule a Gr R participant with a group of Gr. 6 learners). For this reason and in the interest of the participant, we will be reluctant to allow any rescheduling of events.

Participants are now allowed to present new material in the first round of the Young Performer Awards Competition, provided that it is on the same level or higher than the work performed in the previous year. 

This is more often the case in speech and drama items when students have moved on to new material.  Participants in the more senior grades of classical and contemporary music, as well as dance, mostly perform the same material as in the previous year.