Dance shoes

by Kwangkxz

• Pointe shoes are designed for ballet dancing. These have a toe box that is stiffened with glue and a hardened sole so the dancer can stand on the tips of their toes. They are secured by elastic straps and ribbons that are tied to the dancer's ankles.
• Ballet shoes are heel-less slippers made of canvas or leather, with either continuous or two-part sole (also called split-sole). The sole is typically made of leather, with thicker material under the ball and heel of the foot, and thinner and thus more flexible material under the arch so that the foot can be pointed to its utmost. Ballet slippers are usually secured by elastics that cross over the top of the foot. They are most commonly pink, white, black, or pale tan, although they may be made in specialty colours such as red or blue.


• Jazz shoes typically have a two-part, rubberized sole (also called split-sole) to provide both flexibility and traction, and a low (one inch or shorter) heel. They are secured to the foot by laces or elastic inserts.
• Tango and Flamenco shoes are used for dancing the tango or flamenco.
• Ballroom shoes fall into two categories: Ballroom and Latin American. Both are characterised by suede soles. Mens' ballroom shoes are typically lace-ups with one-inch heels and patent leather uppers. Ladies' ballroom shoes are typically court shoes with two-inch heels, made of fabric that can be colored to match the dancer's dress. In contrast to the low Ballroom heel, which evenly distributes weight across the foot, Latin American shoes have higher heels designed to shift weight onto the toes. Latin shoes are also more flexible than ballroom shoes. Men's Latin shoes typically have 1.5- to 2-inch high, shaped heels, while Ladies' Latin shoes have 2,5-inch to 3-inch heels. Ladies shoes are typically open-toed and strapped.
• Dance sneakers. Also known as dansneakers, these are a combination of a sneaker and a dance shoe, with a reinforced rubber toe.
• Character shoes have a one to three inch heel, which is usually made of leather, and often have one or more straps across the instep to secure it to the foot. They may come in soft-soled (suede) or hard-soled varieties. They may be converted to tap shoes by attaching taps.

Dance paws are known by various names depending on the manufacturer, including dance paws, foot thongs, foot undies, and foot paws. They are slip-on, partial foot covers that protect the ball of a dancer's foot from skin abrasions while executing turns. From a distance, flesh colored foot thongs give a dancer the appearance of having bare feet.