Often the same person who designs the setting of a production will also design the costumes. Ballet costumes have to be carefully reinforced so that the dancers can move easily in them and not worry about them coming apart while they are dancing. In ballet, female dancers are able to stand on the tips of their toes by wearing a special shoe called a Pointe Shoe. Shaped like a tightly fitted slipper, the area covering the toes is made of layers of fabric glued together to form a box . When dancing, sweat and body heat soften the shoe to a point where it can no longer hold the dancer s foot.
Dancers can go through one pair of pointe shoes each performance.
Male dancers do not wear pointe shoes. They wear ballet slippers or special ballet boots that are flexible enough for them to move in. When dancers rehearse in the studio a pianist plays the music for them. It is usually at the dress rehearsal that the dancers hear the orchestra for the first time. It is also at the dress rehearsal that the dancers have their final opportunity to try on their costumes, work with the props and scenery and practice the steps on the stage.