From the manufacturer

Leo Dancewear

Beginning in 1924, Leo’s is the story of a Chicago dancewear company that started out small and went on to become one of the first names in dance.

Leo’s Advance Theatrical Co, was founded over 85 years ago by Leo Harris

Trained in Europe as a shoe designer, Leo Harris brought his artisan skills to the United U.S and began hand crafting dance shoes for some of the world’s most renowned dancers. As shows were created in or came to Chicago, Leo was called upon to design and manufacture custom dance shoes for such dance greats as: actress and dancer Eleanor Powell (once dubbed the world’s greatest tap dancer), renowned ballet dancers Alexandra Danilova and Frederic Franklin; Gene Kelly’s ballet teacher Berenice Holmes; esteemed dancer, choreographer and director Bob Fosse; famous tappers Peggy Ryan, Jack Tygett and George Moore who worked with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers.

Leo Harris singular dream was to produce the world’s finest handcrafted and most innovative dance shoes

Leo began in the old Capitol building in downtown Chicago, and the location would eventually shape his destiny-next door to Balaban & Katz’s Chicago Theatre, across from the State-Lake Theatre and a short distance from the Oriental Theatre. Each of Leo’s neighboring theatres had stage shows, ballets and as many as 8 or 10 musicals playing simultaneously. This gave Leo Harris a natural platform to exercise his talents at shoemaking and passion for dance. He worked with local and visiting professional dancers to improve his designs based on specific feedback from the dancers. Leo researched the anatomy of the body and the physics of dance and molded them into dance shoes that worked in harmony with the dancer to achieve optimum performance. The company Leo built, now looks to the future to be true to Leo’s passion for innovation and superior quality. Our mission is to serve the dance community that Leo loved.

Shoe Sizing Recommendations

Ballet Shoes

Start with 1/2 to 1 size larger than your normal US street shoe size.

Tap Shoes

Start with 1/2 to 1 size larger than your normal US street shoe size.

Jazz Shoes

Start with 1 to 2 sizes larger than your normal US street shoe size.