Post #144 - www.pink-tutu.com
Hello darling tutus! Welcome back to another exciting time travel adventure! I'm Emma, your favourite pink tutu-wearing ballerina, and this month, we're whisking ourselves back to December 12th, 1672! Can you believe it? I’m already shivering with anticipation, feeling that familiar excitement that always happens just before we jump through time…
It’s not a huge leap for us this time, but it's a significant one for the world of ballet! And this month, it’s particularly exciting for me, as I’ll be exploring what's happening in both Paris AND London! But don't worry, I won't let those gorgeous pink horseshoes take a rest, because a visit to one royal ballet house would never be complete without seeing the other. 💖✨
Firstly, a HUGE thank you to you wonderful readers. I’m beyond chuffed to be celebrating over 140 posts on this blog, with over 10,000 followers and my very first, rather delightful, international ballet classes in my hometown of Derbyshire - where the first budding pink tutus are blossoming! The entire region is abuzz with excitement. You see, after months of fundraising, a group of lovely local patrons chipped in so that a couple of Derbyshire girls, who are passionate about dance, could afford to go to the Royal Ballet School in London! You can tell it's their passion, darling tutus, they come out in droves and give the whole village a gorgeous, delicate air, their lovely pastel ballet dresses rippling through the street, as they swirl and pirouette to their classes, ready to leap towards their future ballet dreams. We may be small in the great world of ballet, but the tiny pink flame has already lit a fire in Derbyshire!
Right then! Where to start in our whirlwind ballet tour?! Let’s begin in France… Paris, the glittering heart of the court, buzzing with life! This time of year was an especially exciting one for Parisian society!
Ballet De La Cour! - 🩰🇫🇷💖The French, you see, always have an excellent sense of style, don't they, darling tutus? In Paris, the court of King Louis XIV is quite the place to be, and nothing speaks elegance better than the “Ballet de la Cour,” or "court ballet" in French! It's the big event that everyone’s been waiting for, darling tutus! It’s what the court gathers to see – a magical spectacle that weaves together stories of love, courtly intrigue, and heroism. Just picture, if you will, shimmering costumes, beautiful dances, dazzling court ladies, dashing knights... what a treat for the eyes! 💖
My friend (you may know him as Louis) was already the king by this time! I am sure it’s going to be quite a grand performance in Paris with this handsome fella at the heart of things! The most magnificent dance halls and dazzling court sets would have had dancers performing in opulent costumes and beautiful, bold music. A feast for the eyes! I bet the dancing shoes were a riot of colours too! Oh how I would love to step back in time and try those slippers. Maybe even pop over to the cobblers to watch a show. I could easily fall for a fine dancing shoe and its cobbler creator. They’d probably take me for a bonkers bonnets but they’d have to be charmed by those sweet pink tutus.
## The "Ballet de la Cour" - "Love and Intrigue at the French Court"! 🎭👑💋
Today is a special day for the “Ballet de la Cour" - a dazzling royal treat with a little bit of history too! The court was abuzz with talk of a performance on the 12th of December, called "Ballet des Arts,"! Imagine, darling tutus, an entire spectacle dedicated to celebrating artistic skill and the power of inspiration. I imagine “Ballet des Arts” would be just as dazzling and flamboyant! They would have had beautiful settings to set the stage for dancing knights, queens and royalty as their performers, and to really tell a story about the love of music, art and theatre, it must be utterly thrilling! The beautiful settings alone are something that fills me with joy, just thinking about it!
They really go all out for these "Ballet de la Cour" shows! They put everything into those court productions: sets, music and costumes that are spectacularly magnificent! You can tell from all the lovely paintings and written accounts of "Ballet de la Cour" – these beautiful performances are not just about entertaining, but are a spectacle to bring together all levels of courtly life for the ultimate showmanship, where even royalty are entertained. What a beautiful social occasion and celebration of creativity and artistry – just how I like to have it!
## Ballet is Flourishing Across the Channel! 🇬🇧✨
And the French aren’t the only ones celebrating their passion for dance, dear tutus! As if in step, across the Channel, we’ve just landed in London. Here we’ve got ourselves The Theatre Royal, a grand space filled with drama and performance. Can you just imagine the energy of 17th century London? Such an exciting and energetic city. If you’re keen to see ballet, then you can come and find performances of dances all around London in its public spaces. We’ve come at an excellent time for dancing and drama – and for you lucky ladies who adore tutus, London was absolutely teeming with a culture of elegant dressing! Can you imagine, ladies and gentlemen dressed in the finest gowns and breeches and even dancing in the public street, on their way to the theatre for some fun and entertainment. They’ve been going to theatre in a really big way, too, with productions running like clockwork, and we’re right in the midst of a theatre boom in the mid 1670s. What a wonderful, colourful city this is!
It’s so nice to see ballet popping up all over the place, too – that's the beauty of ballet: you see it everywhere if you look for it, and that’s my aim, darlings, to spread the pink tutu love as far as we can possibly go. This year, I want every lady out there to be dancing in a tutu! 🩰 💖
A Peek at Ballet's Past: Costumes! 👑✨Let's not forget that even before Louis XIV, and even further back in time, beautiful dancers in lavish outfits have been mesmerizing audiences. If I can travel by the magical Meg to an earlier time in history, I’m definitely going to pop over to visit a dance troupe of female entertainers - dancers called ‘bouffons,’ who danced as jesters at the Royal Courts across Europe! The very thought makes my heart race! Just imagine these beautiful women performing for the royalty of Europe, with costumes made from silks and lace, and with beautiful headpieces! They would have performed elegant dances and maybe even some of the theatrical, comical ballet that was still developing in the time of King Charles II in London, who took over as monarch after a brief exile – how interesting it is that there are times that ballet stops because a monarch leaves but is restored with them!
My heart beats so fast just imagining the time periods and locations, the styles of dancing and all the beautiful women who have had the courage and strength to bring beautiful ballet to the world! Ballet really has always had its own royal stamp! How interesting to discover the history, darlings! I want you all to learn and read as much as you can about ballet. As I often tell my friends, history is the greatest source of stories, and these stories have a way of captivating our imagination.
I am thrilled to be sharing all this ballet goodness with you, dear tutus! Join me as I continue on this wondrous ballet journey! 🩰
And always remember… if you can dream it, you can wear a pink tutu! Until next month, be kind to each other, follow your dreams and keep twirling, ladies!
Yours in ballet love, Emma x
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