I have a pair of new character shoes that are SUPER slippery on the bottom. I'm afraid I'm going to break my ankles when my feet slide out from under me! In the past, I've done the basics of scuffing them up outside a bit, or sticking rubber "shoe grip" adhesive pads on them. Well, I've tried both on these shoes and I'm still sliding. The adhesive grips seem to work ok on the ball of the foot sole area, but the heel is still pretty slippery. I tried cutting a small bit of the grip and putting it there, but the sticky part doesn't stay and the grip just slides off as soon as I turn or slide, then I have sticky glue goo on the shoe. I'm not really a dancer (just do musical theatre, I'm more of a singer who can fake her way into dancing with practice, haha), but am trying to break them in for an upcoming audition that will have dance in it and don't want to slide to my death or look spastic! What do you all do?
Anything Goes : How do you make your character shoes not so slippery?!? by Laci Morgan
How do you make your character shoes not so slippery?!?
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Dance rubber the entire bottom of the shoe and heel. It's a thin rubber (maybe 1/16-1/8 thick), most good shoe repair places can do this for you.
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Exactly. The newer shoes that you buy in the States are not really made functually well, at all. I always would have cobblers put a thin sheath of rubber, or really good, thin leather, on the heels and sometimes along the entire bottom, as suggested above. Though, I think the heel rubber is best because you're still better off with regards to the ball with either rosin or soda, as usual. Both Australian and European character/folk shoes are much more realistically made for real live dancers to properly dance in. So sorry that I didn't see your post, prior to this.
I usually stick a square of gaff tape on the ball of my foot if I find myself on a slippy stage/set in shoes without enough tread or traction.