Pointe Shoes Research Paper

If you are like me, then when you were younger and someone said ballerina, you probably thought tutu, leotard, tights, hair in a bun, and pointe shoes. Of course, when I was younger I did not call them pointe shoes, but pink flats with the ribbons on them. Now I know that there is more to pointe shoes than just fabric. According to an article called, “The Point of Pointe Shoes,” by Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, pointe shoes look quite dainty, however they are not and cannot be because they must be sturdy enough to support and balance the entire weight of the dancer. The shoe can actually be made up of “paper, cardboard, burlap, and/or fabric held together by glue” (Pointe shoes, Part I, Becker). There are three main parts that allow the shoes
This area of the shoes is made up of layered canvas and linen/satin held together with glue. According the Saratoga dance, there are different box shapes, including the Tapered box, medium box, square box. Knowing your foot type is important because no two pointe shoes are the same and it is important that they best suite your feet. The tapered box is for narrow feet that taper down from the big toe to the pinky. The medium box is for moderately tapered toes, meaning one or two of the toes are the same length. The square box is for wider feet that are squared or only slightly tapered.
Another part of a pointe shoe is the shank, which is the “stiff insole that supports the arch of the foot” (Saratoga Dance). The shank is made of hard leather. However, this also depends on the pointe shoe brand. According to Kent G Becker, in an article titled “Pointe Shoes, Part I,” some of the major pointe shoe brands include Bloch, Capezio, Freed of London, Grishko, and Gaynor Minden. Gaynor Minden uses elastrometrics for its shanks and boxes, making them last longer for the material is able to always go back to its original