What is your pointe shoe secret? Episode 4: Ganna Muromtseva

Episode 4 of What is your pointe shoe secret? blog interview series features beautiful Ukrainian dancer Ganna Muromtseva. Ganna is a former Principal of the Taras Shevchenko National Opera and Ballet Theatre of Ukraine in Kyiv and has been with the Hungarian National Ballet of the Hungarian State Opera since 2022.

I came across Ganna, belatedly, in this article in Gramilano about how she and her family escaped the war in Ukraine.

I have never had an opportunity to watch Ganna perform on stage in person but online only. She dances very classically and almost ethereally. Although she may be extremely gifted, it must take a tremendous amount of hard work to achieve that quality.

When I asked Ganna if I could interview her for this series, she very kindly accepted my request and shared many visuals with me despite her busy schedule.

Pointe shoes for ballerinas are not just boots but also a life story. It is even more so for Ganna. Let's find out about her secrets.

What brand of pointe shoes do you wear?

Now I wear Freed of London.

What maker? 

Butterfly

What is your size and width?

4 1/2 XX

Since when have you been using Freed? If I am not mistaken, you used to wear Gaynor Minden.

I wore Gaynor Minden for 10 years but when I left Ukraine with only one small backpack I had no pointe shoes at all. Semperoper in Dresden could offer only Freed of London and now I am unbelievably happy to make this change.

I did not know you were with Sampereoper.

After war started, Aaron Watkin offered 3 places to Ukrainian artists to support us. Opera supported us with everything - pointe shoes, leotards, costumes for the Gala, tickets etc. We didn’t have contracts but it was a huge support. And after that we were able to do auditions other places.

Do you ask Freed for any customisation?

I was very lucky to fit perfectly customisation for Nastazia Philippou. It’s a big luck to feel comfortable in someone’s customisation. I danced in her pointe shoes about 6 months.

Do you do any customisation yourself? 

Because of the surgery on my left foot last year I cut a bit of insole only on left pointe shoe.

How long does it take for you to finish customising a pair?

Around 3 hours

Can you share a picture or a short movie clip or two of your pointe shoes with us?

Customisation process -- you can see the C Pro 90 Special stamp

Darned and not darned

Do you like soft shanks or hard shanks better?

Hard shanks

New shoes or old shoes?

New

What support or protection do you use, i.e. toe pads, taping, toe spacers etc? Do you recommend any specific products? Do you use the same support for both feet or different for each foot?

I use the same for both feet: big toe pads made from foam rubber plus a silicone ballet toe pads on top. And when I have blisters skin-on-skin protection.

Do you use elastics and ribbons of any specific brands?

Yes. Elastics only from Chacotte and ribbons from Bloch.

Do you use different shoes for different roles?

Yes! Even for different acts it is usually a different pair. Depends on technical elements in choreography.

How long a pair of shoes last? 

It can be very different. Also sometimes I think that nothing will help this pair. Then I put a bit of glue inside and forget about it for a couple weeks and then I use them again.

Lastly, what is your ambition for the rest of the season and the new season?

Till the end of the season we have a premier of Bayadere - 10 performances. And then we will see what new season brings us :)

Thank you Ganna!

Ganna in the grand adage of Swan Lake

 All images are courtesy of Ganna.

Note: Text is not edited except I added articles, the captions to the movie clips and the link of Nastazia's profile page.