Biscuits

The Dilemma

The problem with models posing as ballet dancers is that not only can they be injured without proper pointe training, but it also takes away recognition of all the hard work dancers put into their craft.

When dancers see people who are obviously not trained dancers modeling in pointe shoes, they often get annoyed. Some people don’t understand because they think it looks fine but the real reason is that they do not understand the amount of dangers there are when doing pointe work without any proper training. Photographers, or anyone who plans a photo shoot, that don’t involve actual trained dancers for ballet shoots are mainly the ones to blame for this. It’s not that difficult to hire actual dancers for photo shoots so when people don’t put in the effort to hire them, it causes multiple problems. First, models are put at risk to injuries and second, dancers feel like their work is not being appreciated enough. Ballet takes a lot of time and effort, especially when trying to get ready for pointe work and models getting picked over trained dancers doesn’t make sense It’s like all of the stuff dancers work towards is taken for granted by the non-dance world. Also, when you look at a model on pointe and a dancer on pointe, I think we can all agree which one obviously looks better.

all photos by Darian Volkova

The Solution Hire trained dancers

When you think about it, hiring people who are actually trained in the specific field that you want them for, is not that hard The simple solution to this problem of hiring models over dancers, specifically for dance photoshoots, is to JUST HIRE ACTUAL DANCERS. There are so many professional ballet companies and dancers out there to contact for photoshoots. Trained dancers are able to do way more complicated moves which will make photos look better quality and more high fashion. Less risk is also involved since dancers are taught to do pointe work and have the correct muscles needed in order to do dance moves safely and properly. The solution to hire real dancers will give credit to the people who work their whole lives for this exact reason and will also prevent dancer outrage everywhere

*cough, cough* Kendall Jenner Vogue ballet shoot (picture featured on page 3).

The Process

1. The sole of the shoe is tacked onto a last

2. Then the upper (the base of the shoe turned inside out) is pulled over the last

3. The front part is pulled over and temporarily pinned down and then two tacks are put in the back

4. The box of the shoe gets built up by using layers of paste, burlap, and paper

5. Pleats are created and then string is put around the front of the pleats to hold them down when stitching the shoe begins

6. The shoe is stitched, tacks are removed, and the frayed material is cut off

7. The shoe is turned right side out and put on a turning stick to move around the layers of paste and fabric inside. After the shoe is ready to go back on the last

8. The shoe is hammered to shape the box

9. After the shoe is hammered the first time, it’s taken off of the last and the inner sole is glued inside

10. The shoe is then hammered a second time on the last and gets shaped even more

11. At this point, the shoe is put in a drying oven for three weeks in order for the glue to cure

12. Once the shoe is dry, marks on the vamp and heel show where to cut around the opening which widens the opening for the dancer’s foot

13. The shoe is almost completed, but the last step is to sew the binding and drawstring on

14. After all of these steps are completed, the shoe is now ready to go out into the world and find its home with ballet dancer

Biscuit Ballerina

An icon in making satire ballet jokes in order to help dancers stop stressing over the perfectionism of ballet

Biscuits or NO Biscuits

The funnest game out there

Simply state whether the picture has biscuits (bad feet) or no biscuits (good feet) and see what score you get!

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