My Ballroom Dance Shoes

Ballroom dancing originated in England in the late 18th and early 19th centuries in which dances such as the waltz, were performed in balls and parties. It was a trend among the working and middle class to go to gatherings and events in public dance halls. In the early 1920s, the Ballroom Branch of the Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing formed due to the boom of ballroom dancing competitions. The objective of this organization was to standardize and formalize ballroom dancing techniques, sets of steps and music to which it was danced to.

All ballroom dances, as with all forms of dance, are expressions of feelings, thoughts, and emotions. These dances may be stricter than other forms of dance and may limit the range of steps and body movement involved, but it is still one of the best expressions of love, joy and pain between two people. The dance shoe can make a big difference in how your feet feel while experiencing these expressions.

Ballroom dancing is fun and gives you a lot of energy, but different styles of shoes are needed for the different dance styles. Usually the lower heal in ballroom dance shoes are used for the Latino dances.

If you are a beginner and looking at what you need to buy, there are basically three different styles of ballroom dance shoes. You can get a practice shoe, which looks like a man’s shoe, but with a higher heal, or go for the standard dance shoe which is closed toed or the Latin shoe which is open toed.