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Ballet Dance Flooring: How to Choose the Best Marley
Ballet Dance Flooring: How to Choose the Best Marley
Find the perfect floor for your studio with our ballet dance flooring buyer’s guide. For studios, schools companies and more – a floor for everything from beginner to virtuoso.
Ballet. The class jazz, tap, hip hop and contemporary dancers love to hate. The backbone of dance; your technique. Say what you will about the tediousness of ballet barre; it’s still the most important tool for developing solid technique.
True ballet dancers know just how demanding this sport (yes, sport) is on your body and the importance of keeping your body healthy. This begins with your dance flooring.
For ballet dance flooring, you need to make sure your floor has the proper amount of slip control. Traditional ballet floors are specifically engineered to offer just the right amount of traction to allow for triple pirouettes while keeping you from sliding to the ground when you land your grand jete.
Just about any reputable ballet company or studio is using what we refer to as “marley” flooring. All that really means is a slip-control rolled vinyl dance flooring. And there’s lots of options for types of marley flooring, depending on your studio or company’s needs.
Marley Floors
As I mentioned, “marley” is a term used kind of like Scotch tape. When you buy the off-brand tape at Target that looks exactly like Scotch tape, you call it scotch tape.
True Marley is no longer available anywhere, but the rolled vinyl we all know as marley is more readily available than ever! In fact, we have 6 different marley options to suit your specific needs.
That’s right – there used to be just one option for safe and attractive dance floors, but times are a changin’. Let’s take a look at your options.
Dance Floor
Dance Floor Rolls are the premier ballet dance flooring. They have just the right combination of slide and grip, providing a medium-fast speed. And the floor has the perfect resiliency to support dancers of all skill level, especially en pointe.
Our Dance Floor rolls, like the Adagio Tour, are designed to be portable and convenient for touring companies. However, you can absolutely install them semi-permanently in your studio, as well.
Our light and portable Dance Floor rolls are also great for jazz, contemporary, hip hop and more.
Dance Floor Installation Options
- Semi-permanent
- Temporary
Adagio
The Adagio roll is the most popular and versatile dance flooring option. In fact, if you have marley installed right now, I’d be willing to bet it’s the Adagio floor.
If you need a dance flooring option that you can use for ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary and more, the Adagio is where it’s at. Adagio dance flooring rolls are medium-fast, offering just enough slip-resistance to keep you safe without getting in your way of hitting your turns.
Adagio Installation Options
- Permanent
- Semi-permanent
- Temporary
Adagio Tour
Just like our Adagio floor, but a little lighter, a little more portable. The key word here is “tour”. These rolls are great for touring companies.
The thin, lightweight Adagio Tour rolls are still plenty durable to stand up to hours of ballet class. They’re simple, easier to move and even better for tap than the original Adagio rolls. If you have a shared space, they might be perfect for you.
However, if you’re planning on doing a permanent installation in a ballet only studio, I’d recommend taking the step up to the regular Adagio rolls.
Adagio Tour Installation Options
- Temporary
Performance Floor Dance Flooring Rolls
Do you plan on doing recitals and performances in your studio as well as classes? Then you might prefer the Performance Floor marley.
The Performance Floor isn’t ideal for tours – it’s more of a permanent deal because you want to keep it looking beautiful and performance-ready.
These rolls are tough and gorgeous, making them perfect for all types of dance, both in class and performances. They have a lot of grip to them, making them a medium-slow flooring option.
Performance Floor Installation Options
- Permanent
- Semi-permanent
Studio Floor
The Studio Floor is for the space you know you can keep protected from through traffic, street shoes and hard-soled dance styles.
This marley roll looks great on stage or in a ballet/pointe studio. It has a good amount of grip, offering medium speed.
This baby is definitely more of an investment than our other marley options so we recommend using it for your performance space or studios that need to look top notch at all times.
Studio Floor Installation Options
- Permanent
- Semi-permanent
Wood-Look Marley Ballet Flooring Rolls
If you’ve ever been to the fancy studios in NYC, chances are you’ve seen those marley rolls that somehow look like hardwood. How do they do that?!
It’s easier than you think! Those floors are nothing more than a traditional vinyl marley ballet flooring roll with a wood look.
And good news! We have them!
Impact Rolls – Wood Series
These are the most beautiful, convincing and durable wood-look dance flooring rolls on the market. The Impact Rolls are thick and durable enough to hold up to everything from dance, to gym flooring and more.
Our impact rolls are like attaching a vinyl marley roll to a 5mm rubber underlayment. These can be especially helpful if you don’t have a sprung subfloor*. These rolls are also versatile enough for jazz, contemporary and hip hop, as well.
Impact Rolls Installation Options
- Permanent
- Semi-permanent
*Note: These are not a replacement for a sprung subfloor. They are not nearly as shock-absorbent. However, if you can’t do a sprung subfloor, they are better than a thinner vinyl marley on its own.
Eco Impact Rolls – Wood Series
Just like the Impact Rolls, but with foam backing which makes them a little more friendly for the wallet.
These are great through intermediate levels, but I wouldn’t recommend them for a professional ballet company. They don’t hold up to heavier weights as well and the weight of repeated jumps and lifts from adult professionals could start to affect the shock absorbency of the foam backing.
Impact Rolls Installation Options
- Permanent
- Semi-permanent
Dance Subfloors
All you really need for your subfloor is a clean, flat, level surface.
That being said, we very strongly encourage you to think about a sprung floor subfloor or home dance subfloor. I know, I know, it’s an extra expense, but it is so worth it.
Whether you’re a studio, school or professional company, the last thing you want is injured dancers. And the best way to prevent injuries is to start with a dance subfloor.
The subfloor absorbs and distributes the dancer’s weight, which allows dancers to continue to jump, leap and roll with a lower risk of injury.
Ballet Flooring Durability / Longevity
All of our marley rolls are specifically designed to hold up to years and years of dancing of all levels. In fact, most of them boast at least a 5 year warranty, with our wood-look options offering as many as 10 years.
These rolls are in it for the long haul.
Ballet Flooring Installation
Every marley dance flooring roll is a little different. Each of our ballet marley rolls is rated for either permanent, semi-permanent or temporary installation. Just check the manufacturer’s specifications and follow the direction for your desired installation.
Traditionally, you can easily install marley dance rolls yourself by laying rolls flat and using vinyl dance flooring tape over the seams. Of course, we always recommend checking the product specifications before installation.
For best results, loose lay your marley rolls 24-48 hours in advance to allow them to fully relax. Leave a 1/16”-1/8” gap between rolls (but no more – you don’t want to have full-on cracks in your floor!) to allow for expansion and contraction. We also recommend topping them off with a matching vinyl floor tape.
Ballet Flooring Maintenance
No matter how many signs you put up that say “No shoes in the dance studio”, you know people are gonna walk in with their shoes and track in outside dirt and grime all over your beautiful floor. I know, it is so frustrating!
The best way to combat how difficult it is to keep the outside dirt away is to choose a dance floor that is easy to take care of. You’re going to have to end up cleaning it regularly, so you don’t want a floor that requires a big song and dance (pun intended).
The good news is all of our marley ballet flooring options are super easy to clean and maintain. They just require sweeping/vacuuming and a damp mop with a mild cleaning solution. For best results, use this dance floor cleaner daily and do a deeper clean with this heavy-duty dance floor cleaner a couple times per year.
If you end up with scratches that really bug you, you can give it a more careful scrub. But, generally speaking, it’s really just as easy as taking care of any home floor. Just make sure to clean up spills right away and you’ll be good to go!
Ready to get started?
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Ari Ziskin is our resident expert in all things fitness, dance and flooring trends. After five years of blogging at Ari’s Menu, where she was featured on sites like The Huffington Post and Buzzfeed, Ari decided to pursue writing full-time. Nothing makes her happier than sharing her knowledge to help people create their gyms and begin their fitness journey.
Opening up a new dance studio and looking for best ballet floor. Needs to work for all dance types BUT i prefer it to look like wood. Not plain color.
Any ideas?
Thanks!
Hi Tory,
The Adagio Rolls are the most versatile. However, they only come in black and gray.
http://www.rubberflooringinc.com/dance-flooring/adagio.html?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=comment&utm_campaign=Ballet
For wood look, I highly recommend our Impact Rolls – Wood Series. These are more of a specialty dance flooring option you won’t find everywhere. I just wouldn’t suggest using them for tap.
https://www.rubberflooringinc.com/vinyl-roll/plyorobic-rolls-wood-series.html?utm_source=blog&utm_medium=comment&utm_campaign=Ballet
Please let me know if I can answer any further questions.
I’m looking at doing the adagio floor for my daughters for practicing at home. Any way to use over carpet?
Can any of the Marley type rolls be installed over carpet for an at home practice space for children?
Hi Becky,
Unfortunately, carpet is not a good subfloor for a marley roll. You need a hard, flat subfloor to keep the marley even and safe for your kiddos. If you have commercial-style very low pile carpet, you may be able to get away with it. Otherwise, you would need to find a hard surface space in your home. Please let me know if I can answer any further questions.
What would you recommend for a recreational dance studio floor. We have kids 3-18 years old using it as well as a senior citizen tap group. The present flooring we have continues to get scuffed up with the tappers and never really comes clean. We are not professional and there is no lifting, point work, etc…
Hi Charry,
The best all-purpose marley roll for tap and recreation dancers is definitely the Adagio roll.
Alternatively, if you wanted to go with a hard surface, you could also install scratch-resistant Dance Tiles. These tiles aren’t recommended for a lot of technique work, but they’re great for recreational dance and they’re made to look sharp even with tough taps and ballroom heels.
I’m setting up a home studio for my dancer and I’m a bit confused with the products i need. She does all forms of dance so I was looking at the Adagio. I want a subfloor, so I was going to order the 3/8″ home dance subfloor tiles. Do I need the Flat Top Dance Tiles on top of the subfloor? Or can I just lay the Adagio on top of the subfloor. She does practice tap, so I want to make sure I have the correct products.
Hello Janet,
Thank you for your question! It sounds like Adagio will be the best choice for you. In terms of subflooring, hard tiles directly underneath the Adagio roll will give you more of a “tap sound” than foam tiles. If you want, you can layer a foam tile on the bottom, hard tile above that, and the Adagio roll on top. You can also just use the hard tiles beneath the Adagio roll. There are lots of options to choose from!
If you have any more questions, we’ll be happy to help.