So this happened yesterday:
For the first time in a long time, I not only took a ballet class, but I did the class en pointe! Pointe work has always been my “thing.” My ballet teacher growing up was very particular about pointe work. She ensures not only that her dancers have solid technique but also makes sure they are extremely strong before allowed to start pointe work (she even has a strength test she administers that every student must pass before being allowed to buy their first pointe shoes.) Because she was so stingy about letting us start pointe work, it came easily to me and once I was awarded my pointe shoes, she still jokes that I never took them off.
I was the only dancer I grew up with who wore pointe shoes for every single call (every.single.class, and the whole class!) Even in college I wore my pointe shoes for every class in which it was allowed. After graduating, when I began dancing in Oklahoma, I still wore my pointe shoes every class though I only put them on for center work (partly because that was the norm where I was dancing and partly because pointe shoes are expensive and my meager pre-school teacher salary didn’t allow for new shoes every 3 weeks as I needed through high school and college.)
My pointe shoe wearing days slowed down when my dancing did after I broke my foot and though I’ve been in and out of the studio in the 7 ½ years since, I’ve been in my pointe shoes even less. I did some work en pointe during my residency at Dance Ireland and I don my shoes every time I return to my “home” studio but that’s about it. I didn’t wear them during my regular classes while pregnant since I was out of pointe shape and my balance was constantly changing.
But this week when I walked into my third ballet class of the week (in addition to teaching 7.5 hours of ballet this week) I decided it was time, my body and technique was ready. And while the class was successful (though I did take them off for jumps at the end) there were a few things I had forgotten about dancing en pointe:
- Everything is harder in pointe shoes. Duh, right? I don’t just mean dancing, though. Unless you’ve been in pointe shoes you won’t really understand but just standing around is harder in pointe shoes, walking is harder in pointe shoes, stretching is harder in pointe shoes, EVERYTHING is harder in pointe shoes.
- Those few inches of toes make a huge difference in where your center of balance is. I’ve finally gotten a good handle on my balance en demi-pointe (aka “flat”) but had one heck of a time getting my bits stacked up in order to balance in my pointe shoes yesterday.
- Making your feet pointe in pointe shoes takes a lot more effort (and muscles) and cramps are easier to get and much tougher to relieve!
- Pointe shoes put pressure on your joints like nothing else. Aside from the cramping in my arches, the other reason I took my shoes off for jumps was because my big toe joint (where I used to get blisters and have since lost my callouses) were aching from the pressure of the hard box.
- My turn out is better in my pointe shoes. Why? I don’t know but it just is!
- I still love dancing en pointe! The feeling is like nothing else in the entire world and all the hard work, sweat, tears and frustration was all worth is for that one second of weightlessly standing high up on my tippy-toes!
