Hi! I’m 27 and started ballet about 6 weeks ago, with no previous dance background. There are no adult classes near me, so I take live online classes. We’re a group of 5 and the teacher does give corrections, but there isn’t time to build a very individualized plan of exercises for each of us, so I’m asking here. Photos of my pointed foot are attached.

Please be brutally honest.

About my feet:

• Roman/square foot, very short toes, small (EU 35, about US women’s 5)
• When I point, the last joint of my big toe doesn’t bend and actually stays slightly turned up

Beyond that, I honestly don’t know what my specific weaknesses are. I’m too new to tell what to look for.

Exercises: my teacher gave us about 12. The main ones are resisted point/flex with a theraband, doming (short foot exercise), resisted inversion/eversion, toe yoga (toe splay, piano toes), a kneeling theraband exercise, resisted pointing lying on my back, and quick toe presses.

Doing them all on both sides takes 25+ minutes. I can only give my feet about 10 minutes, 4 times a week, because I’m also doing Pilates and turnout work.

My questions:

1. Looking at the photos, what are the most important issues with my feet, in order of priority? Am I missing something, or worrying about the wrong things?
2. Which exercises (from this list or others) would best target those issues? Is the turned-up big toe normal, and can it be trained?
3. Are my feet average for an adult beginner, or well below?
4. How much can feet like mine realistically improve with consistent training?
5. I’d love to do some basic barre work en pointe in 2–3 years, if my teacher agrees. Looking only at my feet (I know strength, technique and other factors matter too), does anything make that unrealistic?
6. My shoes are So Danca split-sole ballet slippers in non-stretch canvas. They feel tight, and my toes press against the fabric, especially in demi-plié. But in the photos they look baggy, with wrinkles around the toes. I honestly don’t know what a good fit is supposed to feel like. Do they fit, or should I try a different size or a stretch canvas model?

Thanks!

So i noticed some pain in my ankle this ballet class and a girl suggested i should tape my ankle i’ve never done anything like that so i need help.

The strongest pain is is like when i bend my foot on the fr and it travels to like the outside of my foot it’s strongest right where i bend my foot but a little bellow.

And the other pain ,wich was a lot ligher is like around my achilles tendon and like net to it when i pointed my foot or went on demi point. But this one stoped and i believe it was already gone by the point i did pointe shoes.

I hope someone can help and that this is the right subreddit for this questio.

My teachers always say I have a great turn out, but I’m not sure how to use that to my advantage. What should I do?

I’m in my 30s.

When you think of Youth America Grand Prix (YAGP), the organization’s viral social media videos of young dancers performing classical ballet variations, with soaring lines and platter tutus, may come to mind. But YAGP’s performances in the Doris Duke Theatre in October 2026 show a different side of the organization—instead of a competition, YAGP is bringing Fresh Voices in Dance, a program including nine world premiere ballets created by the inaugural recipients of their new choreographic fellowship.

These performances mark the first-ever public presentation of the fellowship, providing a platform for choreographers to get their work in front of audiences, as well as giving public performance opportunities to the young dancers they partner with.

Read more about this weekend's performances here: https://www.jacobspillow.org/blog/youth-america-grand-prix-and-davidson-farias/

I see a lot of people wearing stirrup tights with the cuff/tight part around the arch cut off, what’s the benefit of this?

Hello! I was wondering what youtube channels would you guys reccomend for ballet, I did grade 3 in ballet a year back when I just started it but for financial situations I can't afford classes anymore, I want and plan on returning but for the mean time I don't wanna loose my progress and if I can get better while I focus on college I would love to know what channels do you guys recommend or have worked for you!! Thank you so muchhh!

I have an option to purchase seats up close or a little farther back and I’m torn. I hear up close you can see expressions, costumes etc… but a little farther back you can see the entire stage and the formations of the all the swans better.

I could really use some input. I need to purchase tickets today to get these seats.

Hello! Does anyone know where this Leo is from?

Out with the old, in with the new 💞

I'm an adult beginner and as my first ever pointe shoes I had GMs, which lasted for 2.5years with about one pointe class a week (otherwise around 2-3 ballet classes with barre and stretching). My teacher noted the shank had gone loose inside and the fitter noticed the bubbling (can be seen in the photo) which meant they had died, apparently. I wasnt sure what dead Mindens are like, even with research, as theyre not the same as traditional pointe shoes. However, I've progressed during this time and felt like they didnt support me and just werent the right fit anymore?

The fitter (who fitted my first ones too) first tried on the yellow GMs but they bent like socks, and we were both shook. In the end I left with Bloch European balance with the strong shank. I am hypermobile and as Ive progressed it seemed that I need that harder support, as I can articulate my feet better now. I feel accomplished because for the longest time I used to believe my noodle like limbs were something I couldnt help as my body type is naturally quite slender - not at all easy to put on muscle. My flexibility is def more of "my thing" but noticing Ive gotten some strength gives me so much more inspiration to keep going! My fitter/teacher also said my feet had gone through a metamorphosis. Even though the new shoe is entirely different, they feel amazing! Wish me luck though, might have to build even more strength to dance with these. I have not bent or softened them because I want to try to do that with my training🤣

I rented a videotaped performance like that when I was in Kindergarten, but I understand that's not the norm. Please provide images if you can.

Does anyone have any ballet slipper recommendations for short, wide feet? Normally I love my Bloch performas but I had to take a break from dance for a little while, then when I put them back on they felt so tight and my feet were cramping. I’m already wearing a wide size in them.

Just as the rain cleared on a recent Sunday morning, an eclectic group of ballerinas gathered on the fifth floor of Ailey Studios in Midtown Manhattan. None were ballet dancers by trade. But as they moved around the studio, unfolding their limbs with practice and grace, it was obvious that ballet lives in each of their bodies.

This is a rehearsal for the Ballet Salon, a new company designed to provide a space for lapsed dancers to return to the art form. On Monday, at the Gibney Theater at the Agnes Varis Performing Arts Center, the company will have its formal debut as part of a two-night engagement. Most of these dancers haven’t performed in years.

The company was founded last year by two former pre-professional ballet dancers, Meiying Thai and Adriana Gramly. “At the time I quit ballet, nobody really gave me other options for how to have a life filled with dance,” said Thai, who had been a student at the School of American Ballet. “I didn’t really have an entry point back in.”

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