How many white tutus? Three hundred fifty-three. How many tight hairdos? Three hundred fifty-three.

Hundreds of young dancers gathered at New York’s Plaza Hotel on April 17. Their purpose? To break the world record for most dancers on pointe in one place. (Dancing on pointe, or en pointe, requires pointe shoes. These have cushioned toe boxes that help ballerinas stay up on their tippy-toes.)

The program was organized by Youth America Grand Prix, a ballet scholarship program. The dancers included professional dancers and students aged nine to 19.

Tchaikovsky music played. For a full minute, the ballerinas stood on tiptoes and switched their weight rapidly from one foot to the other. (That step is called bourrée.)

Tina Shi, a judge for Guinness World Records, announced the results: “Three hundred fifty-three! That is a new Guinness World Record! Congratulations!”

The previous record for ballerinas on pointe was 306.

Are you curious about ballet? Head over to the WORLDkids website to learn about the physics, costumes, and history of this European dance form. Did you know ballet even influences the regular clothes people wear?

Let them praise His name with dancing. — Psalm 149:3