First Pointe Shoes – What is the Right Age to Start Pointe Work
When a girl starts ballet, her dream is that one day, she'll be dancing effortlessly on her toes on stage in a beautiful tutu, her feet encased in a pair of gleaming pink satin pointe shoe It's no wonder that in ballet schools, the equivalent of "Are we there yet?" is, "Can I start pointework yet?"
The hard fact is that it takes a lot of hard work and years of training to get to the point (LOL) of pointe work. Trying to fast-track the process is fraught with danger: it can lead to injuries and even end a dancing career. So it's very important to honestly assess whether a dancer is ready for pointe work.
This clip gives a very good summary of what needs to be considered.
Is 10 Years Old Too Young?
It worries me that I'm seeing so many 10-year-olds in pointe shoes. Starting that young can be dangerous - it could even mean the end of a promising dance career before it even starts! It's vitally important you have the technique and strength to handle the extra pressure - start before you're ready, and your feet can actually become deformed. Only a specialist examination can say for sure, whether you're sufficiently developed to start pointe work. Just because you think your feet look or feel "ready" doesn't mean it's OK.
Tamara Toumanova was one of the "Baby Ballerinas", child prodigies who were world famous during the 1930's, dancing professionally by the time she was 13. She said she regretted being put on pointe too early, as it caused endless foot pain and foot problems in later life.
Personally, I think no student should start pointe work until they're 12, unless they're in full time training at a major ballet institution.
Sure, there are girls who will be ready for pointe work much earlier - but if you can't afford an expert to confirm that, why take the risk? It won't make you a better dancer, and only increases the risk of career-ending damage or injuries. Girls who start at 12 will soon catch them up, and probably overtake them because they've spent two more years developing their fundamental technique.
There are far more bad reasons than good ones to start pointe early - here are a few:
- The teacher isn't properly teacher-trained and isn't aware of the risks of pointe work under the age of 11 or 12. She may have started pointe early herself, and been one of the lucky ones who got away with it.
- The student demands it, and the teacher's afraid to say no in case the student leaves and finds another school that will agree. The teacher has to pay the rent - so she gives in.
- The mother demands it, and the teacher gives in for the reason given above. Mothers who push their daughters to do pointe work too early, should remember that they'll have their daughter's crippled feet on their conscience for the rest of their lives - are bragging rights really worth that much?
- The student is an exceptionally good dancer, and the teacher wants her to dance on pointe so she can win competitions and enhance the school's reputation.
I know it's hard to be patient, but it will pay off in the end!
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Photo with thanks to Barnarina09 on Flickr.
13 Responses to First Pointe Shoes – What is the Right Age to Start Pointe Work
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I’m 13 and my teacher is only just letting me go on pointe (first class tomorrow
) but I’m one of the oldest in my class, most of them are 10-12 years old and also starting pointe.. One of the girls is a JA at the RBS, I think they’re letting her do it and SHES 10.
Anna, break a leg!
There are ballet schools who put their students on pointe early, but that doesn’t mean it’s right. The teachers often haven’t been adequately trained and don’t understand the dangers. At the RBS, they have experts who can advise on whether a girl is ready for pointe, so that might be the reason for the JA being allowed to do it. But it’s interesting to note that when you audition for the full RBS course at 12 years old, the audition only includes 5 minutes of pointe at the barre only. So the RBS isn’t expecting you to be able to dance on pointe at 12.
My teachers wouldn’t let us start until we were 12 or 13 and even then it was endless boring bar exercises to teach us proper posture and technique for a good year before we started center exercises. Turned out I have really long, weak arches, so I never even made it to the center – my feet just were not built right for pointe, so I spent the next few years until I quit watching jealously from the sides!
Great info! It’s sad that teachers allow this kind of thing to happen. I think parents need to get much more involved and informed about their daughters dancing, a 10 year old who loves ballet probably won’t say no to pointe but if her mother was aware she might be able to put the kibosh on it. Not that all parents are uninformed, but in my experience too many don’t bother to learn.
My daughter started basic pointe work at 11 but they do not do a lot, and only if the teacher thinks they’re ready. There is a lot of pressure on students however to do pointe in competitions as they think it gives them an extra “edge” and possibly winning against someone not on pointe. I think it should be stressed that pointe can only be done in age groups of 13 and over. I have seen girls in 11 year old age groups competing on pointe and falling over. My daughter does not intend on doing any pointe in competitions until next year when she is 13.
It is hard to strike a balance. I want my daughter to take her time but she is very keen to wear them.
There is no such thing as “striking a balance”, I’m afraid. That implies meeting someone halfway. Just remember that if you give in to her demands and let her get en pointe too early, you could be crippling her for life.
Wow, that is wonderful information. I’m am in Grd 3 ballet @ my dance school and im 12. We are not permitted 2 dance on pointe untill we are 13 or older, but if you are 13 and you are quite weak, new 2 ballet or do not listen well in class then u hav 2 wait cause cause of injury is 2 risky, Thankyou JUDY 4 teaching me to dance!!!!
Thank you for your article. My daughter is 10 and is preparing for a national ballet competition. The sad thing is in this introductory division pointe is not required but “recommended.” Most of the girls therefore compete on pointe against the few who are wise to stay in a soft shoe. Kudos to those teachers like my daughter’s who put the child’s health before the glory of producing a very young ballerina prodigy. And thank you for being very clear as to the damage done to our lovely young girls in the very competitive world of young ballerinas. My daughter will take her point reduction for dancing in soft shoes with pride and grace!
I started on pointe when I was 10 years old and it was the worst decision of my life. I was very ambitious and even though I had to pass an exam to advance, my teachers were in disagreement as to whether I was mature enough to handle it. Well, I was NOT! I became very disillusioned by the hard work and the pain that I was told I should not feel. I was unable to handle this disillusionment and the pressure to succeed and so I quit. That was (and still is) the biggest single disappointment of my life. Dance is a passion. Mothers, teachers, counsel your girls to wait! A strong body does not necessarily mean a strong mind at this age.
Angelfish, I’m so sorry you had such a bad experience. You may not be able to see it, but the silver lining is that you quit, before you damaged your feet. I’ve known other girls start pointe at 10 and continue on, battling with sore feet for years, only to find their feet are too badly damaged to continue into a professional career.
My studio doesn’t let us go up until we are 12, and then if we are strong enough. I was at master classes for a nationals competition, and in the 8-11 age category everyone was on pointe except the girls from our studio. I’m 14 and a half, just getting shoes today because of changing studios w different styles/being a late bloomer. But I think it’s better that I’m going up now, because my ankles are really strong which I need because I have a naturally super high arch.
Lucky you, I’m sure that means you have beautiful feet! And you are so right – because you’ve laid such excellent foundations, you’ll catch up very quickly. And when those 8 to 11-year-olds are struggling with injury problems in a few years, you’ll pull ahead of them!