DES MOINES, Iowa —
Ballet Des Moines has been a fixture of Iowa’s performing arts scene for 60 years. But as the state’s only professional resident dance company grows, so does the cost of keeping its dancers on pointe.
Principal dancer Chiyo Nishida can wear through a new pair of pointe shoes each week while rehearsing and performing routines filled with jumps, spins and elegant movements on tiptoe.
“It’s always fun to be on your toes. I find it really exciting,” Nishida said.
Before each performance, Nishida carefully customizes the shoes by bending them, breaking in the soles, removing and adding materials. It is a familiar process.
“I really like the smell of the leather and the satin. So, like, when I open up a bag, it’s like, ‘Ahh,’ a really nice smell to me,” Nishida said.
Since the ballet season began in August, the dancer is already on their eighth pair and expects to use dozens more over the course of the season.
“I’m usually in 28 pairs or a little more,” Nishida said, smiling. “It’s pretty mindless now because I do it so, so many times.”
Ballet Des Moines has nearly 20 dancers who wear the special pointe shoes. The company orders about 300 pairs annually at roughly $150 each.
“It adds up very quick. We probably spend about $45,000 a year on pointe shoes,” said Erin Arndorfer of Ballet Des Moines.
Pointe shoes are now one of the company’s largest budget items, driven by higher footwear prices, overseas shipping and an increase in the number of pointe dancers. That growth also allows Ballet Des Moines to stage more ambitious productions.
“The growth just allows us to do more. There’s certain repertoire that we can’t perform unless we have a certain number of dancers,” Arndorfer said.
The company relies on donations to cover the cost so dancers do not have to purchase the specialized shoes themselves. Ballet Des Moines hopes to raise $10,000 by Oct. 31 to offset its pointe shoe expenses.
“But if a dancer needs more pointe shoes, we can’t tell them no. I mean, it’s their job to be on stage looking beautiful and having a shoe that supports them,” Arndorfer said.
To learn more about Ballet Des Moines’ pointe shoe fundraiser, click here.
