Ballet Shoe Facts

In anticipation of this weekend’s performance of Midsummer Night’s Dream, I’ve lifted the following facts, from the  Oregon Ballet Theater website:

• One pair of pointe shoes costs about $80 and typically lasts for only 8-12 hours.

• Last year alone OBT purchased over 1,500 pairs of pointe shoes at a cost of $120,000.

• All OBT dancers wear shoes from FREED of London, the world’s premiere pointe shoe manufacturer. Cobblers at FREED custom craft [OBT] dancers’ shoes to suit each ballerina’s particular specifications and preferences.

• A Principal Dancer will often wear one new pair of shoes in every single performance.  For very demanding roles, like Odette/Odile, it is not unusual for a ballerina to go through multiple pairs of shoes in one evening.

• Pointe shoes are constructed with layers of Satin Burlap, tissue paper, flour paste, reinforced cardboard and leather.

• Young dancers must study ballet for 4-5 years before going en pointe; it requires a great deal of strength in the legs, ankles, and feet as well as strong turnout.  Most young dancers get their first pair of pointe shoes around the age of 11 or 12.