When a girl starts ballet, her dream is that one day, she'll be dancing on stage in a beautiful tutu, balancing effortlessly on her toes, her feet encased in a pair of gleaming pink satin pointe shoes.

It's no wonder that in ballet schools, the equivalent of "Are we there yet?" is, "Can I start pointework yet?"

The hard fact is that it takes a lot of hard work and years of training to get to the point (LOL) of pointe work. Trying to fast-track the process is fraught with danger: it can lead to injuries and even end a dancing career. So it's very important to honestly assess whether a dancer is ready.

This clip gives a very good summary of what needs to be considered:

I've seeing more and more 10-year-olds in pointe shoes (like the one in this clip), but dancing on pointe that young can be dangerous. At that age, it can deform your foot by damaging the growth plates.

This little girl may be waving goodbye to a career as a ballerina before she even starts!

It all depends whether your bones are fully formed or not - and only a specialist examination by a doctor can tell you that! Just because your feet look or feel strong enough doesn't mean it's OK.

Tamara Toumanova was one of the "Baby Ballerinas", child prodigies who were world famous during the 1930's, dancing professionally by the time she was 13. She said she regretted being put on pointe too early, as it caused endless foot pain and foot problems in later life.

Personally, I think no student should start pointe work until they're 12. There is evidence that girls are maturing earlier these days, so some may be ready - but why take the risk?

It doesn't make them better dancers, and only increases the risk of career-ending damage or injuries. Girls who start at 12 will soon catch them up, and probably overtake them because they've spent two more years developing their fundamental technique.

There are no good reasons to start pointe work early, only bad ones:

• The teacher isn't properly teacher-trained and isn't aware of the risks of pointe work under the age of 11 or 12. She may have started pointe early herself, and been one of the lucky ones who got away with it.
  
• The student demands it, and the teacher's afraid to say no in case the student leaves and finds another school that will agree. The teacher has to pay the rent - so she gives in.
• The mother demands it, and the teacher gives in for the reason given above. Mothers who push their daughters to do pointe work too early, should remember that they'll have their daughter's crippled feet on their conscience for the rest of their lives - are bragging rights really worth that much?
  
• The student is an exceptionally good dancer, and the teacher wants her to dance on pointe so she can win competitions and enhance the school's reputation.

I know it's hard to be patient, but it will pay off in the end.

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All text copyright Marisa Wright. Photo with thanks to Barnarina09 on Flickr.