Ballet gets to grips with its inner sole

Date     May 15, 2013   Jenna Clarke Jenna Clarke Entertainment and lifestyle reporter

If the shoe fits: Dr Gordon Waddington with 16-year-old ballet student Emily Clout. Photo: Melissa Adams

An Australian researcher is undertaking the first major redesign of ballet slippers since the 1600s.
The University of Canberra's professor of physiotherapy Gordon Waddington and Assistant Professor Jeremy Witchalls are working to give dancers extra "grip" and more control over their movements to prevent lower leg injuries.
"My research week sees me working with ballet dancers at one end and dealing with big rugby league footballers at the other," said Dr Waddington, who works across a number of sport disciplines.
"All of these people are quite similar, believe it or not, as they rely on having a very good perception of surface and the ground they are moving over. They rely on having very good movement control to do the things they need to do safely."

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Dr Waddington has developed an insole made from textured PVC which has a lined pattern so it locks into the skin - similar to a doormat but on a smaller scale.
It slips into the ballet shoe for barre work only, in the testing environment. Should it prove to increase surface perception and thus decrease ankle and lower limb injuries, the insole would be worn during all practice sessions, rehearsals and performances.
Classical kinetic educator at the Australian Ballet School, Janet Karin, a long-time fan of Dr Waddington's work, has enlisted her students for an 11-week trial using a PVC shoe insert.
"I came across Gordon's work and the research he was doing into the movement of footballers and geriatrics more than 10 years ago, but the technology wasn't available back then. These changes could be revolutionary, not just for dancing but for all movement-based sports and activities," Ms Karin said.
"We are four weeks into the trial and are just using the insert … for barre work at the moment. Some have said they don't notice it, while others have said they find it 'interesting'.

Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/dance/ballet-gets-to-grips-with-its-inner-sole-20130514-2jkjq.html#ixzz2UYc2oRBY

ADVICE FOR BUYING NEW POINTE SHOES

It is very important to make sure the fitting of a student’s first pointe shoes is done correctly. There are two ways you can go: a hard shoe for support or a softer shoe that will help develop the supporting ankle and leg muscles. Make sure you let your students know which one is your preference. If the softer shoes are your preference make sure you start the student with very simple strengthening exercises at the barre to avoid injury. Having a good relationship with staff at the local dance store will help lessen the chance of having a badly fitted pointe shoe. Some dance schools like to have a staff member from one of the local stores come in to do multiple fittings on the one night. This way the teacher can keep an eye on the fit and suitability of the shoe. They will, of course, only do this if it is worth their while in a monetary sense.

The manner in which each dancer breaks in their pointe shoes is entirely up to the individual but you could discuss a few ideas with the student who is a newbie. Some people use the heel of their hand to flatten the box a little and then give the shank a little bend to loosen it up at the instep area. Others use water to slightly soften the box at the points where bunions commonly develop. Some use a spray bottle of water while students gently work the shoe. This is a nice way of making them conform to the dancer’s foot. However, the danger is that shoes may become too soft and therefore become unsafe for the novice pointe dancer.

The sewing of the ribbons obviously help to keep the shoe on but also offer support for the dancer’s ankles. The most common instruction for the location of the ribbons is to fold down the heel of the shoe towards the front. The ribbons should then be sewn on the sides of the shoe in line with where the heel section has reached. Some dancers also sew in an elastic loop from the centre back seam (the heel) that goes around the ankle. This offers extra support and stops the heel of the shoe slipping off especially when on demi pointe. Make sure the thread is sufficiently strong because the ribbons will be under a lot of pressure.

Protecting the toes and feet from blisters, bunions and skin being torn away is again a personal choice. Some of the more traditional methods are: wrapping lambs-wool around the toe area for protection; taping the toes with masking and other types of tape; spacers between the toes to stabilize the foot in the shoe; and some people used to apply methylated spirits to their toes at home to ‘toughen up’ the skin on the toes. Yikes! It seems now that there is no shortage of hi tech toe pads available on the market – some of the foam type and some are special gel ones. Suitability is going to differ from dancer to dancer so it may be a case of experimenting to see which works the best for each dancer.

I could discuss this area for a lot longer but I have tried to summarise most points (no pun intended!). Pointe work can be a little painful at first, but with a little care and gradual development it should be one of the most inspiring parts of learning to dance.