Dance Shoes

Depending on the type of dance a dancer does will determine the kind of shoe the dancer will wear. It is important to be wearing the proper footing while dancing to be able to effectively dance to fullest of their credibility.

Turf Shoes


These shoes are used in high school a lot. These shoes are perfect while the dance team is on the sidelines doing dances before their halftime performance. These shoes are also good for dancing in the grass. The thick soles keep the shoes from being tore apart on the track turf. Another type of turf shoes a lot of dancers are using today is just regular high top shoes. These are used more for hip hop styles. High tops are great because the sole is thick and it doesn't tear up the shoes.

Jazz Shoes
 



These shoes are perfect for stages and basketball courts. Jazz shoes are lightweight and allows the dancer to move easily. These shoes are small and give enough support to be able to do turns, leaps, and all dance techniques without getting in the way. These shoes can be used in other types of dance such as contemporary. 

Ballet Shoes




Ballet shoes are only for ballet dancers. These shoes are very unique in comaprison to every other type of dance shoe. These shoes have a couple other names such as "pointe shoes" and "ballet slippers." These shoes are very hard on the feet. The reason they are so popular is because these shoes make it easier for ballet dancers to be able walk on their tip toes (called pointe in dance world). These shoes are extremely uncomfortable and very stiff but because they are stiff that is how they stay on pointe.

No Shoes

A couple weeks ago I did a blog about contemporary dance. In contemporary dance, many dancers opt out of wearing dance shoes. This is because people love to feel the music in contemporary music and there are many level changes. Shoes can get in the way and sometimes mess a dancer up.

It is important to know what type of shoe to wear for what type of floor and dance.

Dancers Foot Injury

Foot injures are very common in dance especially ballet. Some can be healed fairly quickly, while other injuries will take quite a bit of time to heal. Some injuries will end a dancers career for good.

Foot Injury
Some common foot injuries are Dancer's Fracture, Sesamoiditis, Hallux Valgus and Bunion, Hallux Rigidus, Plantar Fascitis, and Metarsalgia.

Dancer's Fracture
This usually happens when a dancer jumps up in the air and lands with their foot turned in. To treat this a dancer needs to put ice on the ankle, elevate, and limit weight on the ankle. After the fracture heals it is important to do rehabilitation.

Sesamoiditis
Sesamoiditis is pain with bending and straightening the big toe. There are a few ways to treat this. First off all take time off of dance. One needs to see a trainer or a physician to see how serious the disease is. The use of  a J pad may be used to relieve pressure. This may take several months to heal. Surgery may be needed to remove the sesamoid bones if condition does not improve.

Hallus Valgus and Bunion
This is where the big toe points inward causing pain and discomfort. This causes pain not just on the toe, but can cause pain on the ball of a dancers foot. Treatment for this is if caught early stretching, strengthening exercises, and/or orthotic prescription. Toe spacers may be used. Worst case scenario, surgery may be needed.

Hallux Rigidus
Hallux Rigidus is where there is restriction in in the joints in a dancers big toe. This can also bring pain. A big toe should be able to move at a 90 degree angle. Some treatments include ice massage and stretching the big toe and the sole of the foot.

Plantar Fascitis
This is pain in the sole of the foot. The tissue connected to the heal bone becomes inflamed and painful. IT becomes more painful after dancing or any heavy exercising. Treatments for this are ice, rest, anti-inflammatory medicine

Metatarsalgia
This is where there is pain over the ball of the foot. Ice, rest, strengthening muscles using toe flexion, and metatarsal pads can help heal and relieve pain

For a dancer the sooner that one can diagnose a foot problem, the easier it can be to take care of. Dancers must be on their toes (no pun intended) about pain and discomfort. If pain and discomfort is ignored, it could take a long recovery.

 

Dance Shows

In the 21st century, there have been different shows to showcase ordinary people who can dance. Last week I put a youtube video of a girl named Lauren Froderman. These dance shows can lead to fame, being on broadway, being back-up dancers for celebrities, and really opening doors for the contestants in the dancing world.

Some popular shows that involve dancing are:

• So You Think You Can Dance
• X Factor
• Dancing with the Stars
• Dance Moms
• Dance Academy
• America's Best Dance Crew

On shows like So You Think You Can Dance, X Factor, and Dancing with the Stars people are judged by a panel on whether or not they are good enough to compete in the next episode. This is reality dancing. Sometimes the viewers at home have an input on who they want to save for the next week. Dance reality shows have used media outlets such as twitter, hashtags, and texting for the viewers at home to be a part of the voting process.

Being noticed as a dancer can be extremely hard. One has to have the perfect body, endless amount of training, and a little bit of luck to be noticed. These shows help the contestants/stars of these shows get noticed. Hopefully one day these aspiring dancers will be able to make it big.

Contemporary dance

Contemporary dance is considered to be an expressive type of dance. This dance has many different dance styles such as modern, ballet, and jazz in it. Also, jazz can be danced to many different genres of music from classical, country, R&B, jazz, etc.



Contemporary is not as strict as ballet is. Contemporary dances allows the dancer to move with the music. Sometimes the dancers do not wear any jazz shoes. Jazz shoes can be hard to move around on sometimes. Also, it is less likely for a dancer to hurt their ankle with all the movement in contemporary music.The beat and the words of the music flows with the dancer and how the dancer incorporates the music shows through her dancing abilities.



There can be a lot of floor work in contemporary music. Also, there are level changes. Level changes is where a dancer might start into a jump or turn, lands on the ground (floor work), and then get back up and start dancing again.



Some contemporary dances do not look like normal dance moves. That is completely normal because the dancer is listening to the music and words. Then the dancer comes up with a movement that reflects what they are feeling. There is a term called "Relaxation and Release" which is where a dancer takes all of her frustration, anger, and stress and then through dancing releases all that built up energy and releases it on the dance floor. This makes for a powerful and moving dance routine and lets the dancer let go of everything that the dancer has bottled up.



Below is a audition from So You Think You Can Dance. Lauren Froderman does an excellent job on her audition. You can tell she connects to the music, uses her own style, and can captivate the judges with her interaction with the song and lyrics. Enjoy!

k

Bethany College

In my blogs I have talked about the background of dance. This blog post is going to be a little bit different.

I started dancing when I was in high school. When I was a senior I tried for my college's dance team (Bethany College). I got a position on the team.

As a dancer, you have to be able to do many types of dance. I had to learn how to do contemporary, hip-hip, and jazz. This is why it is very important to have a ballet background because the basic ballet moves are in all of these different styles of dancing. In the past few years I had to learn to do the following:

• fish roll
• seconds
• double and triple turns
• switch leap
• calypso
• barrel roll
• break dancing (stalls)

These are just a few things. Dancing is just like any other sport you have to be dedicated to what you are doing. You must be flexible and be willing to put in long hard hours at practice. You have to love what you do no matter what it is in life. Mine just happens to be dancing! :)

The picture below is me following a public figure on twitter for a week for class.