Welcome back to Pink Tutu Travels, everyone! This is your monthly dose of ballet history from yours truly, Emma, your tutu-wearing time traveller from the heart of Derbyshire, England. This month's trip is taking us right back to 1922, August 8th - a date which sparked quite the ballet buzz around the globe! As always, Magic Meg, my shimmering pink Shire with golden hooves, is patiently waiting at the stables, ready to whisk us back to this fabulous period. (Just look at her gorgeous pink sparkly mane and tail, she really does have the most dazzling coat!).
This post is number 3140 on my little website www.pink-tutu.com - if you are a first-time reader, welcome to my world of sparkly tutus and travelling through time!
For those new to my ramblings, I get my funding from ballet performances – so naturally, I’m always looking to pick up ideas from the past. You never know when inspiration will strike! As well as performing, I love everything about the art form - classes, shows, ballet history, fashion, and even ballet on the streets! You’d be surprised at some of the creative dance displays you find when you travel through time. And naturally, you will find me clad in pink – from head to toe!
My aim in life is to get everyone rocking a pink tutu, as it’s the ultimate symbol of feminine power! A pink tutu? What a delightful and playful symbol, don't you agree? Just think, we'll have all the ballet worlds dancing in pink! I’m determined to bring more colour and fun into the ballet world - even if it means taking my time machine a bit further than a stroll around London!
Now, where were we? Ah yes, back to 1922! On this particular date in August, the international ballet scene was sizzling. Firstly, we have the Russian Ballet, or the Ballets Russes as it was affectionately known, who were causing a right stir! A sensation in the ballet world, led by the one and only Sergei Diaghilev, they were touring Europe with a show stopping performance called “Schéhérazade”. It was such a hit it became part of their repertoire – a real show stopper!
Speaking of repertoire, August 8th also brought an exciting production in America! *This time it was *the New York Hippodrome which held the spotlight with its own version of “Scheherazade” – featuring Anna Pavlova! Imagine, she must have been absolutely magnificent. Pavlova, a superstar of her time, was famed for her delicate grace and beautiful dancing.
Just a hop across the pond, in London, ballet was also booming! I can practically hear the crowds cheering now, because Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, you guessed it, were performing their legendary "Scheherazade" once again at the London Coliseum. Oh, I simply must see this production for myself next time. It must have been absolutely dazzling with the famous set design by Leon Bakst! Just picture this: glorious colors, rich silks and a vibrant and magical oriental ambiance – how absolutely breathtaking!
But it wasn't all "Scheherazade" and touring groups in 1922! The Royal Opera House, London was in full swing with a whole season of productions. It’s exciting just thinking about those fantastic performances! With a repertoire of ballets like “The Sleeping Beauty”, “Swan Lake”, and "Giselle" it must have been an incredible season.
To my time travelling heart, August 8th 1922 was a time of tremendous change, where dance, art, and history all came together, weaving an exquisite tapestry for the world of ballet. But I couldn’t just stay in the year 1922! This is a story about my time-traveling ballet travels - and, naturally, the pink tutu had to make a dazzling appearance.
Just picture this – I arrived at the Coliseum, feeling like a pink ballerina in a storybook, as if I stepped right out of “Sleeping Beauty”! The grand theatre looked almost magical. Imagine all those excited theatre goers waiting with baited breath to see Diaghilev's “Scheherazade.” The beautiful dresses and suits, all adding a splash of colour to this elegant ballet occasion. It was so very exciting. It really felt like “once upon a time” coming to life!
While my own time travel costume is never anything other than a flowing pink tutu with its magnificent pink silk fabric (it just dances beautifully!) - with this vintage, almost Belle Epoque feeling to it, the excitement really was quite tangible! Even my horse Magic Meg had a lovely matching pink ribbon. (She looks absolutely adorable - I even put pink glitter spray on her mane! It adds that little something something and matches the pink on her sparkling coat - the glitter just shows off how much I love pink!
My aim in life is to get every ballet dancer and lover of the dance, in the world wearing pink tutus. But I do know everyone isn’t quite ready for pink - or to make a splash of pink with their outfits. So, I keep a trusty leather rucksack on my back and filled with fabulous pink ballet treasures from the past!
As usual, it was the time of my travels that allowed me to make a little profit from the ballet performances I attended, to help with my expenses. A time-travel blogger needs money after all - so I did a little show, for a couple of locals who happened to see my pink tulle and golden-hooved horse! It was such a joyful impromptu show in that grand, magical square and they were so amazed. Naturally, I was a little out of place - being all pink - in a world where people mostly wore brown, grey and black. But hey! It just shows my style is so much more current than even the 1920s could possibly understand.
Just after my delightful little London impromptu performance a group of local ladies came to say hello. “You must come back!” said a delightful, bright-eyed woman with rosy cheeks – a real charmer. Her name was Emily and a couple of other charming women with a smile just like hers said hello. One woman even took my business card - she said she would go see my website when she had time. It is just like one big ballet dream when the ladies in my audience are so gracious and welcoming, isn’t it? You never know what surprises you'll find while time-travelling! It was all quite extraordinary - I just love those amazing little connections you make as a time traveler.
As always, I like to remind you, readers, you are part of a very special and important community. Let’s continue to make this a fun and vibrant space where we all dance for joy! So go ahead, wear a pink tutu – even if it is just around the house – let the world know you are a ballet enthusiast!
See you next month, in the next part of Pink Tutu Travels – it’s gonna be even pink-er, if you can imagine!
Happy dancing!
Yours in Pink,
Emma.
www.pink-tutu.com
