On a recent episode of BBC’s beloved show The Repair Shop, emotion took centre stage when guest Julie Felix watched her treasured pointe shoes be lovingly restored. Felix, a London-born dancer of Caribbean heritage, entrusted the expert craftsmen with the ballet shoes she wore during her debut professional solo performance nearly 40 years ago.
Reflecting on her journey, Felix paid tribute to her late mother, who was her biggest supporter through many challenges. In the 1970s, after being rejected by a London ballet company because of her skin colour—told “we can’t have a brown ballet dancer in the line-up of the swans”—she moved to America. There, she joined the prestigious all-Black Dance Theatre Of Harlem in New York.
Seven years later, Felix returned to London’s Royal Opera House, where she earned her first solo role. During that performance, she danced wearing her specially dyed “tan-coloured” pointe shoes, made to match her skin tone. The shoes symbolize not only her triumph but also her mother’s unwavering love and belief.
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Seeing the beautifully restored shoes left Felix breathless, overwhelmed by emotion. “I was winded, almost. It was genuine tears,” she said. “Even now, when I talk about my mum, my throat tightens. I knew these shoes would be exactly what she wanted.”
Felix revealed her mother’s final wish: to have the shoes repaired and displayed in their home as a cherished memory of that special night at the Royal Opera House. “That really choked me up,” Felix shared. “I looked up at the seats in the Gods and said, ‘Mum, I’m here, I’ve done it,’ and it took me right back.”
Now proudly displayed in Felix’s home, the shoes serve as a daily reminder of her mother’s love and support. “It doesn’t take much for my eye to catch them, and I just think, ‘Mum, look at these. That’s what she wanted.’”
In 2024, Julie Felix was honoured with an MBE for her contributions to dance education. Over a distinguished career as a dancer, instructor, mentor, and writer, she has been a passionate advocate for supporting Black talent in the arts.
The Repair Shop continues to touch hearts every Wednesday on BBC One at 8 pm.