CapezioWomen's Manhattan Xtreme Tap Shoe

Get a size up. No joke. But if you get a smaller size by accident, you can expand them by putting thick socks on and then running a hairdryer over the tight spots. Keep wearing them until they are completely cooled. I did this and, yes it was quite painful, but it worked. You need to do it over a few days so that the shape will be maintained, but they are nice shoes.The taps can be quiet if you are a beginning tapper. The rubber on the bottom of the shoe is thicker than the tap, so if you aren't good at really isolating those ankle muscles, you might want to file down the rubber to where it and the tap are flush. You don't want to take the rubber off though because it will cause your foot to stand in a painful way--your toe would be higher than the ball of your foot.Very nice shoes. Good style.

I love these girls. They feel and sound amazing. I highly enjoy the flared heel for more stability and a more resonant sound.These took some getting used to after having your traditional character taps with a 1.5 inch heel. I am 5'2" and I have tiny baby feet (5.5). Having this high of a heel is definitely a challange. I taught tap in them and I won't like, after 3 consecutive 45 minute classes, I was feeling it.I don't recommend these for hours and hours of teaching and rehearsing but they are sexy and sound awesome. Definitely a great show shoe!

I was a bit hesitant to order these shoes after reading other reviews, but I'm glad I did. These shoes fit me very well, and I have four other pairs of tap shoes to compare them to. I find them easy to dance in and comfortable for and hour or so, although I expect them to feel even better as they break in. I did start with 20-30 minute sessions the first few times to break them in. I don't pull the strap tight, so I don't have the issue of it pulling the shoe up across my foot that others complained about. These shoes fit so well on my foot that the strap is almost unnecessary and can be just lightly fastened.

It is so difficult to find comfortable attractive Tap shoes. I have searched high and low, all over the internet. The problem seem to be 1. they always run too small --why is that? Why cant they make the sizes like all the other shoes in the world? 2. Most every style is UGLY. 3. there are only 2-3 color choices, black, gross beige and nauseating old mannequin beige. 4. They are either cheaply made and expensive, moderately made and expensive or well made, still ugly and expensive as all get out.I ordered three pairs of these. The first pair had a cut in the leather. The next two have odd places on each foot where the fit pinches, but I settled for the larger size as I needed something before class was over.I have had a identical pair (same brand) I bought years ago for ballroom dancing and those are like slippers. I will probably save these for outside performances and continue my search.

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...

I haven't had a pair of tap shoes in a very long time and I am so happy with these that I am dancing through my days.The quality is first-rate and is apparent in every stitch of these shoes. The factory-attached taps are just fine, although a professional might prefer a different set.The sizing said "true to street shoe" and that is almost correct. Mine seem to be just a little smaller than street shoe size--I wear a 8.5 Medium or a 8 Wide, and these 8 Wide are just a little too tight in my larger foot (smaller foot is fine). I know the leather is going to stretch and, so far, the too-tightness hasn't been a serious handicap, but you might want to keep this in mind.I love these shoes and wouldn't hesitate to buy another pair. In fact, I AM going to eventually buy a beige pair so that I can have them dyed to a flashy turquoise just for fun!