For the toe dancer there are toe shoes which have a padded box toe. These come in black and white kid and in pink satin. This toe shoe and the regular soft ballet shoe, which is used for ballet technique, should both be a perfectly snug fit, the toes of the foot coming to the very end of the shoe. To do this requires a shoe about two sizes smaller than one's regular street shoes.
Nothing is better for the limbering and stretching foundation technique, as given in the Ned Wayburn courses, than the soft ballet shoe with a quarter-inch lift at the heel.
For acrobatic dancing this type of shoe is also recommended, though many prefer an elk sole cut out sandal, which is also the choice for Oriental ballet dancing. These sandals if too large will bulge at the sides, hence care in their fitting is desirable. The most commonly used shoe for girls doing acrobatic and soft shoe work and one that is excellent for this purpose, is a black kid flat, as it is known, which has a low heel and flexible sole; a sensible, comfortable shoe, such as your feet thank you for.
For tap and step dancing there are several types of shoes, the most common being that known as the "Mary Jane" or juvenile shoe with ankle strap and button or buckle. Another favorite is the laced low shoe, known as the oxford, made for both men and women. The solid clog shoe has a full wood heel, arch and sole, and is used for very advanced clog dancing; not to be worn by beginners, but only the most accomplished professional solo dancers. There is also a low show for "Tap" dancing called the "Split-clog" shoe, used by very advanced pupils only, never by beginners, the half-sole being wood and the heel wood, as well, but most professional dancers prefer what is known as the "Haney" metal plate on the end of the shoe to bring out the "taps," or else a wood-fibre half-sole, but no beginner should be worrying about this. Just remember, that you must never try to learn to dance in a French, Cuban or military heel, as they act as a handicap or "brake." No one can learn with them because they pitch one forward at the wrong angle and impair the health.
Fibre Toe
There are several attachments, called "jingles," "taps," fiber half soles, and the like, that the expert dancer in this type of work will wish to have on his dancing shoes, and I shall tell you about them here, but it is best to avoid their use while you are learning the dances. After you have mastered your stuff and qualified yourself without them, then have them put on, but not until after you have become a real dancer.
There is a "coin jingle," as it is called, a brass disc about the size of a quarter of a dollar set loosely on the shoe shank, that sounds like two coins striking together at every shake.
The heel jingle is a brass plate set into the shoe near the heel with a loose disc inside it from which extends a plug that as you step falls and hits the floor.
| Coin Jingle | Heel Jingle |