As the other comment says, there is experimentation, however there's a really fine line when it comes to pointe shoe safety and comfort, and it's hard to replicate in any way that makes them sustainable.
A dancer needs to have complete confidence and control over their feet (think of all the spinning and leaping), if they aren't molded perfectly to the dancer's liking it can cause hesitation, discomfort or bad fitting, which can cause injuries.
Source: Did ballet up to a professional standard and tried many different pointe shoe styles to find the one that worked for me
Alert_Aide4915 t1_j27dzy4 wrote
Reply to ELI5: If ballet dancers need to mutilate their pointe shoes before they can be danced in, why are they still manufactured the way they are? by BurritoBum90
As the other comment says, there is experimentation, however there's a really fine line when it comes to pointe shoe safety and comfort, and it's hard to replicate in any way that makes them sustainable.
A dancer needs to have complete confidence and control over their feet (think of all the spinning and leaping), if they aren't molded perfectly to the dancer's liking it can cause hesitation, discomfort or bad fitting, which can cause injuries.
Source: Did ballet up to a professional standard and tried many different pointe shoe styles to find the one that worked for me