Dance Clothing Questions

[gmarks91]

Hey guys, I'm doing a solo in the fall that I really want to wear some sort of shorts for. Unfortunately my pair of bike shorts have died and need to be replaced. What are everyone's favorite spandex bike shorts? And also do most guys wear their dance belt under them or just do the shorts? Because I've done both for years and I can't decide which I like better.

 

Also for a contemporary pas de deux that I'm doing I want to wear some sort of jeans and khakis however I need something that has enough stretch and give in the crotch. On these shows like So You Think You Can Dance you always see guys wearing pants and doing crazy splits and stretches. Is there a place to actually order these specifically for dance or do most people just get jeans and modify them for dancing?

[Mel Johnson]

You've been wearing bike shorts to dance for years? Maybe I should ask YOU what brand you like.

 

And if I can tell that you're not wearing a dance belt under the shorts, that will last about one class, at the end of which I will tell you that you need to wear a dance belt to my classes. After that, I will enforce that rule. For stage, you will need a dance belt. Stage lighting, even for school stages, which are notoriously badly lit, will make "I'm not wearing any underwear" so apparent that there will be no need for film at 11!

 

And the dance "reality" shows are only reality up to a point. By the time we see the product on air, they've had a trip through wardrobe, who will make sure that the contestants have costumes in which they can work. The blue jeans may look like Levi's, but they're much stretchier.

[Pondfly]

I wear Under Armour and 5.11 Tactical as I get a Govt. discount for my Pilates classes. The 5.11 hold up better in my opinion, but both are good.

[MJ]

You've been wearing bike shorts to dance for years? Maybe I should ask YOU what brand you like.

 

And if I can tell that you're not wearing a dance belt under the shorts, that will last about one class, at the end of which I will tell you that you need to wear a dance belt to my classes. After that, I will enforce that rule. For stage, you will need a dance belt. Stage lighting, even for school stages, which are notoriously badly lit, will make "I'm not wearing any underwear" so apparent that there will be no need for film at 11!

 

And the dance "reality" shows are only reality up to a point. By the time we see the product on air, they've had a trip through wardrobe, who will make sure that the contestants have costumes in which they can work. The blue jeans may look like Levi's, but they're much stretchier.

 

+1 on the DB, absolutely mandatory, Mr. J. A dance skater who also dances and teaches skating has told me he rips the crotch of his jeans all the time on the ice. Ive seen some ice dancers wear jeans, it looks good with the black boots and a dress or western shirt. I always wondered how someone could ever dance in a snug pair of jeans!

 

It's a pity Levis or someone does not make stretchy jeans that fit and stretch, but noone likes a pair of jeans that are mostly polyester, hot and itchy.

[Mel Johnson]

We should bless the day they invented synthetic silk (nylon), thereby making cotton jersey (breathable, but baggy) and knitted wool (worse than polyester in the hot/itchy department) obsolete. I've seen more than a couple of rehearsal photos made during WWII and just after, with the guys dressed in rolled-up chinos. During WWI, some of them were still wearing BREECHES as rehearsal clothing!

[olddude]

"Stretch jeans" do exist, or did. I have heard that the costumes for the Jerome Robbins West Side Story Suite used them, at least in the PNB performances I've seen. Not as stretchy as a dancer might wish, but apparently workable.

[MJ]

@olddude, I saw the Opus jazz on PBS recently, very nice. I wonder how those dancers did pirouettes in sneakers?

[MJ]

We should bless the day they invented synthetic silk (nylon), thereby making cotton jersey (breathable, but baggy) and knitted wool (worse than polyester in the hot/itchy department) obsolete. I've seen more than a couple of rehearsal photos made during WWII and just after, with the guys dressed in rolled-up chinos. During WWI, some of them were still wearing BREECHES as rehearsal clothing!

 

+1 Mr. J.

[Guest]

Hello everyone, I am new to this community. I hope you all will help me here.