Hello darlings! It's your favourite pink tutu-wearing time traveller, Emma, and it's time for another fabulous journey into the past! Today, we're leaping back to April 4th, 1685 – a very exciting date in ballet history, as it marks a key moment in the story of the Paris Opera Ballet.
I woke up this morning buzzing with anticipation, my pink tutu practically tingling with excitement. My trusty time-traveling steed, Magic Meg – a pink shimmering Shire with a mane and tail as white as fresh snow and hooves gleaming with gold – was already waiting outside, pawing the ground impatiently. With my trusty leather rucksack filled with my favourite pink pen and notebook (for recording all the exciting discoveries I make), I clambered onto Meg's back and whispered a magical phrase… "Pink tutu time-travel, I choose 4th April 1685!"
Whoosh! We were off! The world dissolved into a kaleidoscope of colours, then faded into the clear, bright light of 17th-century Paris. And oh, my dears, Paris was simply STUNNING!
I tied Meg up securely outside the Palais Royal – a grand building filled with fountains, gardens and cafes, the very heart of the Parisian cultural scene. Then, I took off my backpack and did a twirl to make sure my pink tutu was perfectly in place. The delicate fabric, shimmering with the light of a Parisian springtime, flowed like a dream around me. It is true what they say, my dears, you can't go wrong with a pink tutu.
Now, to explain this whole "key moment" in Parisian ballet. We're talking about a revolutionary, dazzling performance, not a regular evening at the theatre, my darlings. The premiere of "The Triumph of Love", the creation of the remarkable Mr. Lully, the master of ballet, who himself took part in the spectacle. Can you believe it? This was such a unique moment in ballet history. It wasn’t just the music – that's still celebrated today for its amazing, sweeping, dramatic flourishes, even in this "modern" age, my darlings! It was about so much more, a whole new era, and the very nature of performance changing… Oh, my! It had the audacity, my darlings, to feature actual ladies performing on stage! And the public went wild! It wasn’t a mere "pageant" (although, there was certainly a pageant aspect, with fantastic costuming). The public, for the very first time, saw ballet truly evolve from just dances for nobles, into the art form we see today, which transcends classes and can be enjoyed by anyone, even commoners. Such a significant moment in history, my dears. And you know, I got to take it all in!
Now, where could a fashionable time traveller like me go in Paris but the Palais Royal? There was a sense of exciting new possibilities swirling in the air, an intoxicating mixture of beauty and power, romance and rebellion.
I followed the scent of roasted chestnuts and blooming lilacs to the Salon d’Opera – oh my! Such beautiful costumes, a world of silk, velvet, jewels, a beautiful chaos! People of all ranks - nobility, wealthy businessmen, even some commoners – were thronging the streets. It was just glorious, all of them there, caught in the glamour and thrill of it all.
Now, it wouldn’t be a time-travel adventure without a bit of “ballet shopping”, right? Well, in 1685, there were no real boutiques filled with tutus - tutus as we know them weren’t invented until the mid 1800s! But I had to find something fitting, so I went searching. After wandering through narrow, bustling streets and climbing up a winding staircase, I found the most beautiful shop - a silk and embroidery shop, brimming with fabric fit for a queen! I managed to barter for the most magnificent scarlet velvet, trimmed with gold braid, just imagine it my dears, with all the glittering jewels that adorned that time! Oh my, it just makes me dream! Then, the best bit - I discovered the shopkeeper was the mother of one of the performers in "The Triumph of Love"! Imagine my joy! It turned out to be none other than the lovely Madelaine, the actress who captured the hearts of Parisian society in her role as the character 'Diana', she of the powerful, elegant, goddess-like movements that graced the stage that evening. The shopkeeper, all beaming, told me all about Madelaine and her journey – about how Lully’s innovative performance broke with traditional barriers, allowing women to explore new ideas about freedom and expression through movement. What an honour to meet this inspirational, passionate young woman, I almost wanted to hug her, only that is not terribly “proper”!
As twilight approached, and a hush fell over Paris, I followed a sea of well-dressed people towards the Palais Royal’s theater. The music was exhilarating – flutes and trumpets soaring, the sound so dramatic, with a kind of elegance you wouldn't find today in ballet. You could see the public’s emotions – their amazement, their enjoyment – they were just totally enraptured! Even my trusty Meg, pawing the ground as usual, seemed to be mesmerized by it all.
This ballet really put the focus on dance and on its emotional impact, not just on showy moves – it was about what dancers could convey, making me realise the beauty of "less is more"! My dears, there were even passages where the ladies of the ensemble swayed gently in unison, the movements seeming as delicate as spun sugar! Imagine my glee - a little piece of the 18th-century ballerinas I had dreamed of meeting!
As the final scene reached its thrilling crescendo and the audience rose to give their appreciation – just like I did during the first time I ever saw the magical dancers at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden! – the atmosphere in the theater was almost electric!
Leaving the theater, I had a newfound admiration for Parisian life and history. Lully was right, his new approach was revolutionary. The public, all ages and classes, they were fascinated – and it was clear to see, for all those reasons that people even today are passionate about ballet, the combination of movement, artistry, emotion and spectacle.
Riding back to Derbyshire, the scarlet velvet gently rustling on Meg's back, I felt utterly joyful. Today, my dears, my pink tutu took me not just on a voyage to 17th-century Paris but on a journey to understand why ballet continues to be so captivating. Ballet is so powerful and magical. There are lessons to be learned, an inspirational history we should never forget.
And now for the biggest secret - every time I time-travel, it sparks ideas for the ballet routines that I perform. My dream, my darlings, is that through my dance, I inspire everyone to explore the magic and wonder of ballet! Who knows, maybe I'll even inspire you all to take a whirl in a pink tutu too! 🩰💖
Until next time, dear readers, remember to twirl and dream with me! Don’t forget to visit www.pink-tutu.com and keep those ballet shoes dusted off for all the wondrous times to come. And as always, my dears, keep it pink and keep it twirling! 🩰💖✨
