Traditional ballet pointe shoes provide foot support with cardboard, paper and/or leather saturated with glues. The care of these slippers is critical to their longevity, and many dancers can’t afford a constant supply of new shoes. Dance companies that provide shoes to their members also struggle with funds, often limiting dancers to a certain number of shoes per season. But pointe shoes rarely last more than one performance. Sweat breaks down the glues and the support is lost. Gaynor Minden has brought plastics into the world of ballet. Featured on a recent Tech TV spot, their shoes use a flexible thermoplastic polymeric material (U.S. Patent 5,035,069). The plastic can be heated to help conform to the foot, and is of course longer lasting than traditional materials. But, when given the freedom of an unlimited supply of shoes, one dancer still picks cardboard and glue from Freed of London because they form to her foot better. (via Rebecca’s Pocket)