Can a man wear ballet pointe shoes?
All of the answers below, in particular Griffin and Charlene’s answers, are correct. Yes, men can do pointe, the Trocks are stupendously talented, and yes, it is quite difficult for a young man to start studying pointe for all of the reasons that Griffin pointed out. However, there are a few other things that I wanted to add to the conversation.Some men have very tight ankle ligaments that inhibit getting over the box of the pointe shoe. It is true that there are also women with the same problem, but this problem is more common in men. If you are a young man considering pointe, be honest with yourself regarding your ankle flexibility. Do not put yourself in danger. Wait to start pointe until after you stretch your ankle enough that you can balance safely. Note that I am talking about the ankle joint itself, and not the top of the foot, or the arch. While having a strong arch is an advantage in pointe, a flexible ankle is an absolute requirement.If you are interested in dance beyond classical ballet, there are many really wonderful contemporary choreographers who are working with men and pointe shoes in beautiful, creative ways. Many years ago I attended a performance of Rite of Spring that included a man in pointe shoes that had been painted to resemble the hooves of a satyr. He could balance in his shoes with bent knees and a curved back, and he could hop on his pointes. He was such a real satyr, it was such a powerful effect. If you are open to new ideas, there are choreographers who are interested in men who can master pointe and create exciting new ideas.
Help! My new pointe shoes make my feet sickle!?
I just got my first pair of pointe shoes, Mirella Academies, and I'm having a really hard time getting one foot to go straight when I'm en pointe in parallel. Is there any little tip or trick to this, or do I just have to muscle through it until they break in?
*Ballet* New Pointe shoes. Any Tips?
Plie (plee -ya) and then Roll through the shoes all the way up to a releve. do this over and over and you will have them broken in after no time.
Why do ballet dancers need to break in their pointe shoes?
If you don’t break in the shoe properly first by hand the shoe won’t be stable. Pointe shoes are made of canvas and paste. In order to roll through demi pointe you need to soften the box. You also need to break in the shank to make a “shelf” in the right place for your heel to sit. As the dancer wears the shoes they break in even further. If not broken in by hand first not only will the shoe be unstable, it may break in at the wrong place shortening the life of the shoe and not giving proper support. Pointe shoes are only made to last around 12 hours of dancing in them. Professional dancers go through a pair or sometimes two pairs a performance.
BALLET DANCERS please!! wich pointe shoes are the best?
Dont worry! No one truly knows what kind of shoe to get at first- you have to buy and wear A BUNCH to find the one that is perfect for you. The person at the store who will help fit you should know what they are doing and help you find one that is good for you. DO NOT buy your first few pairs online or through a magazine. Go get them fitted especially since you seem a little worried. They should be snug especially length wise or else you will sink into the shoe. When you go up on pointe, you should be able to pinch the material behind the heel. Feel free to play with the elastic because that does affect how the shoe fits. When you stand in second position, your toes should be flat on the ground. Hold onto a barre or chairback and make sure you can get all the way up on the pointe with the box (flat part at the end) completely or very close to completely flat. My first pair were Sanshas and I loved them. They were soft enough to get up and allowed me to build strength, plus they are some of the cheapest shoes which made my parents happy. I cant remember the style number though. Since then, I've stuck with either Sanshas 202s or Grishko Mayas which I love as opposed to the CK Cherches whose boxes I found way too hard. I know others in my class got Capezio Plies for their first pair and said they were great started shoes. My best advice is to try on way more than you think you should at your first fitting and listen to the suggestions of your teacher/the person doing the fitting. Good luck!
Im dancing on dead pointe shoes..............?
Of course! Stop using your dead shoes! I used my dead ones for only about a month because I liked the feel of them better to my new ones (which I could barely stretch my foot in) and i ended up with 'chronic prosterior impingement' (big words i know!) which is this really painful pinch at the back of your ankle when you dance. It sometimes goes away for a bit, but it will always come back. Heres a link to a video on youtube which is supposed to be for beginners, but I watched it after 3 years of pointe, and was amazed at how helpful it really is! After you break your pointe shoes in according to the video, you can actually pointe so well and it makes you feel as if the shoes are now moulded to your feet. When I broke my shoes in like this they lasted significantly longer too. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pX-PNqJr9z4 Good Luck!
What is the chalk ballet dancers use for their shoes?
There's always like a little box of some kind of chalk that ballet dancers used with their pointe shoes... I would assume to keep the shoes from slipping on the floor. But -- what is the powder/chalk called??
I need new pointe shoes but I want to save money. Help please, please answer?
If you know your exact size, make and model number and are not going to change, then you can order online. However pointe shoes are only made to last 12-20 hours of dancing in them, so if you are getting 9 months out of them, then you are either dancing in dead shoes or not dancing very much at all. The exception would be a shoe like Gaynor Minden which lasts twice as long as traditional shoes. Professional ballet dancers go through a pair a performance. Pre-professional dancers get about two weeks out of their shoes. Most recreational dancers get about two months out of a pair of pointe shoes. One thing you can do to make your shoes last longer is buy two pair at a time and alternate. Go for your fitting then order the same pair online from a place like Discount Dance Supply. They will take the shoes back if they don't fit for some reason. Most of the dance supply websites will. If buying a pair every 9 months is to much for you, perhaps you should consider going off of pointe shoes. Most recreational students spend at least $500 a year on pointe shoes. Serious dancers spend a lot more than that. The more advanced at pointe you become the quicker you go through shoes.
Non-dancer purchasing pointe shoes?
Would you decide to take a calculus class after finishing a few months of first-grade arithmetic? Would you consider yourself an automatic whiz at said calculus because you took biology and it was easy? Probably not. So why would you try pointe shoes after just a few classes 7 years ago, with the idea that mountain climbing, of all irrelevant things, could help you? Ballet builds strength you cannot get anywhere else. Dancers use muscles that non-dancers don't even know they have and don't use for their entire lives. Your arch is probably not even strong enough to bend the shank to get over the box. You need a teacher to show you that you need not only strength in your ankles, but in your turnout, calves, arch, core, and entire body. High arches are often weak and can only be strengthened through years of ballet class. People with natural turnout need to know how to use it. Professional pianists are usually naturals, but they went to a proper lesson, not teaching themselves on the keyboard in their house. As I said, hopefully, you will not get over the box. But if you do, you will have some problems, like sickling, pronating, crunching, and locking your knees. Maybe even a broken ankle. Not to mention, you will need a proper sprung floor used in real ballet schools, which isn't exactly sold in your local Home Depot.
How do ballet dancers stand on their toes?
Answer: they don’t really.It’s a common misconception that 100% of the dancer’s weight is on their toes. In reality, the weight is spread evenly across the foot.From the outside, pointe shoes look pretty flimsy, which probably helps this misconception spread:(picture: wikipedia)However, when you look inside you can see that pointe shoes are really a heavy-duty construction of canvas, cardboard, plaster, and glue:(picture: Gaynor Minden)(picture: DanceWorks.com)This construction is designed to cradle your foot and prevent all the weight from going straight to the big toe. The hard shell-like end of the shoe (shown above) is responsible for this, and is collectively called the “box”. In fact, if you had to pick one part of the foot that is responsible for the most load-bearing, it would be the sides of the foot near the toe joints (which is why many ballet dancers suffer from bunions).The soles of the feet are also partly responsible for bearing weight, due to a thick piece on the bottom of the shoe (called a “shank”).If any of these parts of the shoe wear out (due to use and moisture) then the entire shoe must be thrown away and replaced. Professional dancers can go through two pairs of shoes per performance for this reason.