So it's been a long time since I've bought new tap shoes. The past few pairs I had were provided for me by the production companies I worked for, but now I find myself 5+ years (and two babies later) teaching again. After 4 hours in my tap shoes last week it was glaringly obvious that my feet have grown (thanks, babies!) and it's time to size up. The exhaustive research began, because I'm a huge nerd about this sort of thing, so hopefully I can save some other like-minded maniacs many hours in front of a computer screen! ;) Although the La Mendolas I was wearing were fine style-wise, I was craving a 2" heel. Capezios have always been my go-to shoe across disciplines (pointe, jazz, tap, teaching sandals) when purchasing myself, and I also own a pair of the 3" character heels that are quite nice, so I thought Capezio would be the way to go. There were no 2" heeled taps to be found however, so at first I considered sizing/purchasing/attaching my own Teletones on a 2" character shoe. In the end I decided to keep it simple, and I went with two shoes that come with taps attached: The Footlight Jr. and the Manhattan Xtreme. ***Footlight Jr.: The Footlight Jr. as advertised, has a 1.5" heel. Right out of the box I thought they looked very strange. The cut is bizarre--the vamp is kind of squared off and asymmetrical, fitting slightly higher on the outer edge of the foot. (Picture a "D" shape on the right foot, and that's what you get.) I also had visible toe cleavage, which I've literally never experienced in a character or heeled tap shoe before. Finally, the color seemed off to me. I ordered Tan, and although the box confirms that is what I received, I would describe the color as closer to what I would imagine the Caramel color would be. It was a much darker--and not terribly flattering--color that I don't think would match ANY of the nude tights I own (most of which are also Capezios, incidentally). Based on previous reviews and the many fit guides I consulted online, I ordered the Jr. Footlight in two sizes--8.5W and 9W. Prior to babies I could wear between an 8.5-9 street shoe, but now I am a solid 9. I decided to go with the W both because so many people referenced how narrow these run, and because my character shoes are a M and they are kind of tight. In the end, neither size worked for me. I thought the 8.5 was okay at first, but I quickly realized that as I walked, it rubbed the back of my slightly bigger foot too much. The 9 felt just a tad long, and the W gapped terribly in both shoes. I think I'm going to try a 9M just to see, but honestly I'm not a huge fan of the cut or fit of this shoe at this point. It was very long and skinny looking, and it made my foot look huge. The 1.5" heel also didn't help in that department. But in terms of sizing, I'd say that this shoe is true to street shoe size. ***Manhattan Xtreme: The Manhattan Xtreme, on the other hand, at 2.5" didn't really feel all that much higher to me (but I've been tapping in heels for a looooooooooong time, so maybe that's just me!) The cut was odd on this one as well. There was no toe cleavage, but rather than being rounded (like a classic character shoe), this vamp was more of a straight shape across the center. As the picture shows, it also curves up higher on the sides where the strap is placed. Like other reviewers have mentioned, the strap is super long and doesn't have nearly enough holes in it to fit properly. (Seriously, who was this shoe made for??) Also, because of the placement, I found that--when pulled it tightly enough--the buckle was actually placed near the center of my foot! I got this shoe in black, so I can't make a color comparison, but I wasn't a fan of how either of these shoes looked on. The higher heel made it slightly more flattering than the Jr. Footlight, but there was something bulky and clunky about it overall. Based on other reviews and the fit guides I consulted, I ordered the Manhattan Xtreme in a 9.5W. Once again, I found that the W was too wide for me, but to be fair, I have an average sized foot in the instep area, and it's really only the bunions that make it wider near the front. I found that this shoe caused a significant amount of pressure on my big toes from the top of the shoe (not the front), which also makes me wonder if these are cut narrower (from sole to top of vamp) than the Jr. Footlight. I tend to think that perhaps a 10M may be the way to go in this shoe, which is one full size larger than my street shoe. Overall, I found both of these shoes disappointing. I'm surprised, because Capezio has always made such beautiful, high-quality products. I'm going to give them both another shot and reorder in the other sizes (9M in Jr. Footlight and 10M in Manhattan Xtreme) just to see if it makes a difference in my overall opinion of this shoe, but there is really something off about both of them. If you're looking for a standard character style shoe for Broadway style tap, I'd probably suggest you look elsewhere. What ever happened to a clean cut character shoe style tap?? (*sigh*) Maybe they were trying to go more modern with these shoes? Whatever the case, I'm not a fan. The search for the perfect heeled tap shoe continues...
