Middle Eastern Dance Costuming:
Shoes, Miscellaneous
There are various opinions on the shoe issue; many Middle Eastern dancers prefer to dance barefoot, another contingent prefers high heels, and others prefer some sort of flat/no heel footgear. Even those who prefer bare feet may find occasions when shoes are appropriate, or simply change their minds--after seeing another dancer having to dig a bead out of the ball of her foot, after having to dance on cold/wet/pebbly ground, or after having to scrape that black greasy tar off one's feet after restaurant dancing. The choice is, of course, yours but if you do decide to wear shoes make sure you can dance safely in them. If the shoes aren't designed for dancers or well-anchored to your feet, you may find yourself twisting an ankle.
- Capezio Shoes
phone: 1-800-829-6258 USA
phone: 914 949 6601 International
fax: 914-948-8665
Featured at the Let's Dance Web site: http://www.letsdance.com/catalog.cgi
- Shoes made specifically for dancers. Several styles have been recommended strongly: leather ballet slippers, half-sole shoes (only covers the balls of your feet), and the Hermes sandal (my favorite) - a lace-up, grecian-looking, dance sandal. (You can also go directly to the Half-sole shoe and Hermes sandal Capezio page.) The Hermes sandal is listed in store catalogs as only coming in one color--tan, but you CAN special order it in a variety of other colors such as gold, silver, black or red. Either get a local Capezio dealer to special order it for you, or check out the Let's Dance web page and call their 1-800 phone # (also above) to request it. They claim that their web page is to allow individuals to order their shoes so that individuals should be able to order the shoes directly over the phone without having to go through a dealer.
Tangentially related...
- Arjang Arts and Graphics
PO Box 42606
Tucson, AZ 85733-2606 USA
1-800-UARJANG
Arjang Web site
- They're a local company that reproduces Middle Eastern paintings and calligraphy, especially Persian, on items like T-shirts, posters and cards. If you can, check their web site to see some rather pretty examples of their work.
They also sell Persian audio and video cassettes: classical Persian music, contemporary Persian music and instrumental Persian music.
Last Modified: 15 Jun 1997
Shoes