Why Do Dancers Have Different Color Leotards?

Some dancers have asked us why some children have a different color leotard, and when they'll get to wear a different color. This presents a great teachable moment about dance class uniforms.

We at Modern Motion follow a classical tradition of assigning a dress code for our classes. By dressing proper dancewear, teachers can see the dancer's body and make corrections to technique and alignment. When it comes to assigning colors for groups of classes, we do so by level.

Our youngest dancers start in pink, then progress to light blue at age 5 - the beginning of our Primary level classes. Once a children completes our Primary level, they progress to Level 1 which will be approximately around 1st grade in school. Level 1 dancers wear black until they complete all the skills of their beginner curriculum, then move onto burgundy at the beginner/intermediate level. 

After completing the skills for Level 2 and 3, a dancer is ready to move up to Level 4 and begin independent study, perform a classical ballet variation, and begin pre-pointe training. Lastly, our Level 5 dancers in navy are able to dance on pointe, execute advanced leaps, turns, and extended combinations across the floor.

We also limit which "extras" a child may wear in class. Younger dancers may not wear skirts or tutus in class because skirts are a distraction to youngsters and costume tutus are not proper class attire. A female dancer may wear fitted dance shorts or a ballet skirt when reaching our teen Level 3 classes or higher. 

We believe that dress codes promote:

• Professionalism
  
• Proper technical corrections
  
• Unity and Discipline
  
• A sense of achievement  as you reach new levels

We'll end with this great visual representation of what we're talking about. Compare the pictures of dancers and you'll see a clear difference. Photo courtesy of Revolution Dancewear.

Sincerely, 
Ginger and the Modern Motion team.