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The Washington Ballet's Brittany Stone on Her Wardrobe Staples and Dr. Martens Obsession

Photo by Jim Lafferty for Pointe.

There's one accessory Brittany Stone doesn't leave home without: her headphones. “I'm always listening to music, usually something from the '90s," she says. “It just makes your day better, especially in the morning when you don't really want to get up and take class." Her playlist is full of “good walking music"—upbeat songs that get her moving and motivated. The rest of her street style is characterized by cozy standbys: T-shirts and jeans, white sweaters, overalls and her favorite shoes, Dr. Martens. “They're basically my staple," she says. “I have three pairs. I wear them all the time, especially in the winter."

In dancewear, Stone's priority is seeing her lines. “My style in the studio is very simple, very classic. I almost always wear pink tights," she says. For essentials like toe pads and tights, she turns to Discount Dance Supply: “A lot of times the girls in the company will coordinate when we need stuff and make a big order, because the shipping's cheaper." Outside the studio, too, Stone notes, shopping is a great way to bond with new friends—something she's been doing a lot of since transitioning from Boston Ballet to The Washington Ballet last fall. “Everyone in the company is so nice and welcoming. It's been really good," she says.

Photo by Jim Lafferty for Pointe.

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How Miami City Ballet's Simone Messmer Brings Her NYC Style Down South

Photo by Kyle Froman

Don't expect to catch Simone Messmer wearing a leotard—at least, not for company class. “Ballet class is for me," she says. “It happens every day, so it turns into a major part of how you set yourself up for the day and how you're feeling. I think it's really important to take control of that." In class, the Miami City Ballet principal prefers comfortable separates with clean lines and long sleeves. When it's time for rehearsal, she'll bring out her leotards and tights. “And I tend to bring the skirt or tutu that's appropriate for the role. I try to start right away, to get a feeling for it," she says.

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ABT's James Whiteside Shares Some of His Favorite Pieces From His Always-Evolving Wardrobe

Kyle Froman for Pointe

When it comes to style, James Whiteside likes to push the limits. “Conforming isn't really my thing," says the American Ballet Theatre principal. He chooses pieces that express his personality, while always leaving room to experiment with new ideas. “I haven't really married myself to one aesthetic, and that gives me a lot of options," he says. “One day I'll be preppy, next day I'll be super-urban, then I can be all tattered and '50s. I like to keep an open mind." In the studio, he sports knits and crop tops, and dyes his hair funky colors when the repertoire allows. It works well for ballets like The Sleeping Beauty (in which he wears a wig) or contemporary work. “But if I'm playing Romeo, this wouldn't make sense," he says. Whiteside is influenced by everything from Japanese anime to '90s boy bands to New York City itself, a place he's always wanted to live. “It's so inspiring walking around the city," he says. “Some people are just killing it. Anybody can buy fashion, but having style is a completely different thing."

Kyle From for Pointe

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Ballet Memphis' Julie Marie Niekrasz's Channels Grace Kelly With Vintage Finds

Kyle Froman for Pointe

Julie Marie Niekrasz doesn't shop often, but when she does, you won't find her at the mall. “I love vintage clothing," the Ballet Memphis dancer says. “I think I owe a lot of that to my older sister, who has a really fun sense of style." And her fondness for the past extends beyond clothing—she even owns a vintage KitchenAid mixer. Niekrasz favors local boutiques, where she looks for clean lines and elegant silhouettes from the 1950s and '60s, in a color palette of grays, blues and blacks. She brings the same aesthetic into the studio, though she's also conscious of her partners and the repertoire. When rehearsing a piece where she'll be bare-legged, “I'll try to wear shorts so that the guys have an easier transition period, so they can get the grip of my leg right," Niekrasz says. “If it's a pink-tights ballet like Nutcracker or Romeo & Juliet, then I'll be rehearsing in full ballet-pink wear." When she thinks of a style icon, the first person who comes to mind is Grace Kelly. “She's the epitome of classic," Niekrasz says. “I just love that old charm in clothes. In a way, I wish we all still dressed like that."

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Kelsey Ivana Hellebuyck is Pennsylvania Ballet's Resident Fashonista

Photo by Linda Johnson for Pointe

As a young student at San Francisco Ballet School, Kelsey Ivana Hellebuyck would record her outfit each day in a notebook. “I've always been kind of a nut about fashion," she says. “Getting dressed in the morning is fun. It gets me going, like coffee." And as followers of her popular Instagram account will tell you, she's still keeping track of what she wears, sharing daily collages of her outfits that reveal her fun and eclectic taste. “I started cataloguing it because I wanted to remember what I wore and what was so magical about that equation," she says, “but now other people are enjoying it, so that makes me happy." Some of the Pennsylvania Ballet corps dancer's best finds have come from flea markets or the hidden racks at the back of a store. “I know when something is good, and when I see it, I'll buy it," she says. Hellebuyck brings her personal style into the studio, too. “I love cutoff tights, bright colors, fun prints, lace—things that are different, not the norm," she says. Her keen eye for detail is inspired by everything from the style bloggers she follows on Instagram to the copies of Architectural Digest or W that she flips through on airplanes. “I'm passionate about fashion," she says. “It's second only to ballet."

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