Ballet shoe

For other uses, see Ballet shoes (disambiguation).

Leather ballet shoes, with feet shown in fifth position.

A ballet shoe, or ballet slipper, is a lightweight shoe designed specifically for ballet dancing. It may be made from soft leather, canvas, or satin, and has flexible, thin soles. Traditionally, women wear pink shoes and men wear white or black shoes. Tan colored slippers—which are unobtrusive and thus give the appearance of dancing barefoot—are worn in modern ballets and sometimes modern dancing by both men and women.

Most ballet dancers wear soft ballet slippers for the main part of the ballet class. More advanced female dancers may change into pointe shoes for centre work and performance.

Ballet shoes must fit very closely to the foot, for safety and to retain maximum flexibility.

Construction

Ballet shoes traditionally have a leather sole which does not reach all the way to the edges of the shoe. A modern development is the split sole, which provides greater flexibility and emphasises the shape of the foot when pointed. They are usually made from soft leather, canvas or satin. Leather shoes are long-lasting. Canvas shoes are less expensive but wear faster than average leather ballet shoes. Satin shoes are often used for performances, but can wear out very quickly.

Shoes are secured with the use of elastic, most often with a single band across the arch of the foot, or with two bands that cross in an "X" shape at the top of the arch. In the case of double band shoes, some ballet slipper manufacturers will attach one end of each band to the shoe as part of the production process, and leave it to the purchaser to attach the free ends of the bands for optimal fit.

History

Women began to dance ballet in 1682, twenty years after King Louis XIV of France ordered the founding of the Royal Academy of Dance. At that time, the standard women's ballet shoe had heels. Mid 18th century dancer Marie Camargo of the Paris Opéra Ballet was the first to wear a non-heeled shoe. After the French Revolution, heels were completely eliminated from standard ballet shoes, as they still are.

Ballet

General information	Ballets Glossary History Music Timeline

Ballet terminology	Aplomb Arabesque Ballet d'action Ballet blanc Ballets de cour Barre Corps de ballet Demi-soloist Divertissement Grand pas Pas de deux Pas de quatre Pas de trois Pièce d'occasion Soloist Turnout Variation

Ballet by genre	Character Classical Contemporary Comic ballet Narrative ballet Neoclassical Opéra-ballet Romantic ballet

Ballet by region	Azerbaijani British French Italian Russian

Technique	Balanchine Bournonville Cecchetti Pointe technique Royal Academy Vaganova

Ballet apparel	Ballet shoe Dance belt Leg warmer Leotard Pointe shoe Tights Tutu Unitard

Related articles	List of historical ballet characters

Footwear

Men's dress shoes	Blucher Brogues Brothel creepers Derby Monks Oxfords Slip-ons (Loafers) Spectator shoes (Co-respondent shoes) Venetian-style shoes Winklepickers Wholecuts

Women's dress shoes	Ballet flats Court shoes High-heeled footwear Mary Janes Mojari Mules Peep-toe shoes Saddle shoes Slingbacks Slip-ons (Loafers) Venetian-style shoes Winklepickers

Other shoes	Driving moccasins Flip-flops Galoshes Platform shoes Sandals Slides Slippers Veldskoens

Wooden footwear	Bakya British clogs Cantabrian albarcas Clogs Getas Klompen Namaksin Padukas Pattens Sabot Träskor

Military footwear	Ammunition boots Bunny boots Combat boots Jackboots Jump boots Jungle boots Ranger boots Tanker boots Trench boots

Sport-related footwear	Athletic shoes Ballet shoes Boat shoes Climbing shoes Cross country running shoes Cycling shoes Football boots Hiking boots Ice skates Inline skates Jika-tabi Kung fu shoe Minimalist shoes Motorcycle boots Mountaineering boots Racing flats Riding boots Roller shoes Roller skates Safari boots Skate shoes Ski boots Swimfins Water shoes Wrestling shoes

Fashion boots	Chelsea boots (Beatle boots) Chukka boots Go-go boots Knee-high boots Over-the-knee boots Platform boots Thigh-high boots Ugg boots

Work boots	Australian work boots Cowboy boots Engineer boots Hip boots Rigger boots Steel-toe boots Waders

Other boots	Jodhpur boots Wellington boots

Traditional footwear	Abacas Abarkas Alpargatas Avarcas Balghas Bast shoes Clogs Espadrilles Galesh Giveh Haferlschuh Hnyat-phanats Huarache (shoe) Hwas Jorabs Moccasins Mojaris Mukluks Opanaks Peshawari chappals Snowshoes Valenkis Warajis Kolhapuri chappals

Historical footwear	Areni-1 shoes Buskins Caligae Chopines Crakow (Poulaine) Hessians Pampooties Pirate boots Sabatons

Shoe construction	Bespoke shoes Blake construction Goodyear welt

Lists	List of shoe styles

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, April 14, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.

Ballet shoe

Construction

History

See also