Why do dancers wear pointe shoes?

The simplest answer is to look nice, but more importantly it allows them to dance on the tips of their toes. This extends the line of the legs, creates an illusion of lightness and a sense that the ballerina is floating in the air.

What are they made of?

The tip of the shoe is a rigid box made of densely packed layers of fabric, cardboard and glue (not wood or metal),  much like paper marché. The shank/sole is made of cardboard, glue and leather to provide hardness and support. The rest of the shoe is made of leather, canvas and covered in satin to give an aesthetically pleasing look. The shoe needs to be strong enough to support the dancer on pointe, yet malleable enough for the dancer to articulate the joints of the ankle and foot. Most parts of the shoe are hand-made, and no two pairs of pointe shoes are identical!

How do dancers prepare the shoes for dancing?

New shoes are pretty, but impossible to dance in as they are too rigid, thus dancers do various things to “break-in” the shoe to make them danceable. This includes sewing on ribbons and/or elastics to hold the shoe in place, with the ribbons usually being sewn at the highest point of the arch to help support the arch. They also darn the platform to create friction and protect the satin, followed by wearing and performing rises and releves to soften the box and shank in a natural way that will mould the shoe to the shape of the foot and arch.

When can dancers start dancing on pointe?

For young dancers, it is usually somewhere between the age of 11 and 13. This usually works out to about 5 years of ballet specific training, coincides with puberty, and the commencement of ossification of the soft bones in the foot. Many adult beginners or “returners” aspire to go on pointe as well, and while they are past the age of bone maturation, they should still ensure that they have a few years of good basic technique training before attempting pointe. Whether young or old, it is essential that the dancer have adequate flexibility in the ankle and foot, good strength in the lower limb and torso, good balance/proprioception, and good technique to handle the stress of dancing on her toes.

Without adequate ankle and arch flexibility, one would have problems getting up to the platform of the shoe in order to balance on pointe. This leads to either dancing on the edge of the shoe, or compensation to get on the platform. This is can be achieved by not straightening the knee, or scrunching from the toes or metatarsals. This discourages the use of the intrinsic muscles of the foot, and can lead to overuse injuries of the long toe flexors arising from the lower leg, also known as shin splints.

Without adequate strength of the plantarflexors and intrinsic foot muscles, one would find it hard to roll up onto the platform, causing one to “sit” or “sink” into the shoe. This puts excessive weight and pressure on the metatarsals, toes and toenails, which can lead to metatarsal stress fractures (usually 2^nd metatarsal), blisters and blackened toenails. For dancers with very flexible ankle joint and arch, all the more they need to be strong, to prevent them from falling over the shoe. Adequate strength of the medial (tibialis posterior, flexor hallucis longus) and lateral (peroneus longus and brevis) muscles of the foot is also essential to help stabilise the foot on pointe. This helps to prevent sickling in/out, which puts excessive strain on the tendons and ligaments of the lateral ankle/foot, leading to strains and sprains.

Not getting on the platform, correct, and falling over the platform

Sickling outwards putting excessive strain on the medial ankle, correct, and sickling inwards putting excessive strain on the lateral ankle.

Biomechanics of pointe

Dancing on pointe requires complete plantarflexion of the ankle and foot to a combined minimum of 90 degrees, to create a straight line down from the hips through the knees to the tip of the toes. The ankle joint is stable in this closed packed position as the posterior lip of the tibia locks onto the posterior talus and calcaneus. The vamp and sole of the shoe provides support to the lisfranc and metatarsals joints, stabilising the mid and forefoot on pointe. The toes are in a relatively neutral to slightly flexed position, allowing the toes to be perpendicular to the floor and not curl when on pointe.

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There are over 20 brands of pointe shoes, each with various models differing in shape of the toe box, vamp length, profile height, and shank strength. Combined with the length and width of the shoe, there are a few hundred options to choose from. Pointe shoe fitting requires a trained fitter, who is able to assess the foot and look for a shoe mostly closely fitted to the characteristics of the dancer’s foot. This is especially so for the novice who is just starting pointe and is not sure how pointe shoes should feel. Even professional dancers are encouraged to get re-fitted every few years as their feet may change.

• Firstly, the length of the shoe should be fitted to the longest toe. This should be assessed with the dancer in 2nd position in demi-pile as this is when the foot is the most spread out and the longest. The longest toe should be just touching the tip of the box, without the toes curling or pain from the pressure at the tip of the toe.
• Secondly, the toe box needs to be fitted to the shape/width of the dancer’s toes/forefoot. The toe box should be wide enough such that the foot can be flattened out fully when standing on flat, yet snug enough to provide support at the metatarsal heads when up on pointe.  A toe box that is too wide has too much “negative space”, allowing twisting and crumbling of the foot in the toe box when bearing the full body weight, and the foot to slide in and out each time they go up on pointe,. This leads to excessive weight being taken through the metatarsals and toes which can lead to stress fractures, and excessive friction causing the formation of blisters and calluses. Conversely, a shoe that is too tight can cause compression of the nerves between the metatarsals, also known as metatarsalgia.
• Thirdly, the vamp length needs to be fitted to the length of the dancer’s toes. A vamp that is too long does not allow the toes to extend, preventing the articulation of the foot through demi-pointe to full pointe, which discourages the use of the intrinsic foot muscles. On the other hand, a vamp that is too short will not support the metatarsal heads, causing the metatarsal heads to “pop” out of the shoe with a collapse of the transverse metatarsal arch, and excessive weight to be taken on the toes.
• Lastly, the stiffness of the shank needs to be fitted according to the ankle/arch flexibility and strength. Generally, a more flexible ankle/foot requires a harder shank for support, while a less flexible ankle/foot requires a softer shank to allow the dancer to articulate the feet in the shoe. A weaker ankle/foot may require a stronger shank to provide support, yet a softer shank may allow more strength training of the intrinsic muscles of the foot. A strong ankle/foot may be able to deal with a softer shank. Considerations also include the age and expertise of the dancer, and the current requirements for the shoe.

What is the best brand of pointe shoe?

It is not so much about the brand of the shoe, but whether the shoe fits the shape, strength and flexibility of the ankle and foot, as discussed above. Even within the same brand, most likely there will only be one model that fits each foot the best. Just because a prima ballerina is wearing a certain brand doesn’t mean that it will be good for you. If that was the case, wearing Puma shoes would make us all run like Usain Bolt.

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