Hello, darling ballet lovers! It's your favourite pink tutu-clad time traveller, Emma, here! Welcome back to www.pink-tutu.com, where every month we whisk ourselves off to a new, glamorous era in ballet history! Today, we're stepping back to a time when flapper dresses were all the rage, the Charleston was king, and jazz was the soundtrack to life! That's right, darlings, we're heading to the 10th of October, 1922!
Magic Meg, my fabulous, pink-sparkling shire horse with golden hooves and a mane and tail like spun snow, was champing at the bit to whisk us away, as soon as she felt my excitement about this particularly fascinating period in ballet history! I absolutely love the Roaring Twenties, it's such a vivacious, fun era. We've got our sparkly, beaded flapper dresses, flapper boys, flapper dance moves, and of course, fabulously vibrant ballet! Let's get down to the nitty-gritty and discover what was on in the world of ballet on this particular day, shall we?
But first, dear readers, did you know that the fabulous Vaslav Nijinsky had just emerged from a mental breakdown in 1919 after being confined to an asylum for three years! Isn’t it incredible that he even started dancing again? He's definitely the icon of the period, even if he doesn't dance, and, believe me, his ballet brilliance and charisma is never lost on the ballet world. Nijinsky’s “Afternoon of a Faun” - inspired by the poem by Stephane Mallarme – revolutionized modern ballet. It’s pure genius!
I’m absolutely beside myself to see, as I always do when I come to a new era, how vibrant the fashion scene is. On this date, just two years after the “revolutionary” designs of Coco Chanel shocked the world with a bob haircut and her “garçonne" (boyish) style - so glamorous and edgy for the period - the fashions I saw on the streets of London had so much movement and a more casual look. So fabulous!
Did you know…
…That the ballet “Le Spectre de la Rose” which debuted in 1911 is set in an era not too far from the date we’re time-travelling to - in 1911. Imagine, seeing Nijinsky on that very stage…and that, my darling friends, is my motivation. Every time I step out on a stage and the curtains go up on my ballet show, every last note, every step, takes me one step closer to finding Nijinsky, because that, is where it all started, really! His movement was everything and that's what motivates me, even now.
I saw the new designs by fashion legend Lucien Lelong (it seems everyone with any worth calls themselves “legendary” these days!) in the window of the beautiful couture boutique, La Pausa, a couple of doors down from the gorgeous Hôtel de Paris on Rue du Faubourg St. Honoré - very decadent for a mere £30 a ticket and absolutely buzzing, full of glitter, glamour, and dancing. You could hear the music from miles away.
So it is safe to say, in that day and age, a fashion revolution was taking place, just like ballet and the dance was seeing a huge shift away from the strict confines of ballet class. I even popped into a vintage store in Mayfair. I swear there was not one dress in sight without sequins. It’s such an explosion of color and energy. Absolutely captivating!
Oh, speaking of sequins, how fabulous are these tutus? These were all the rage at the Russian Ballet.
I just had to add one to my collection of vintage tutus! These costumes are quite exquisitely crafted - like delicate art! Oh, it makes my tutu-loving heart sing!
This has definitely become the new world of ballet, it’s no longer the old fashioned rules of classically structured and formal movements but a whole lot of, for lack of a better word…expression. Imagine getting the opportunity to dance under the glittering chandelier at the Coliseum in London and taking those wild and free, sweeping moves of Anna Pavlova across that beautiful stage, like a flock of black swans…such grace…such elegance, but absolutely raw power! That is something I’ve always yearned to achieve. It makes the new choreography I see today even more appealing!
Anyway, we must not forget to document our travels, so grab that vintage, ballet-themed, brown leather rucksack - yes, the one I found in a small attic in Derbyshire on the estate where I grew up that has been passed down to me from my beloved late aunt - that is always packed for these trips with my diary, vintage ballet items, photos and ephemera to bring a little ballet history magic to my little world!
There you have it, dear friends. 10th October 1922, the world is bursting with fashion, movement, and a certain energy which is simply breathtaking. If you are reading this and also live for dancing and a pink tutu then come join the pink-tutu revolution - together we can bring the sparkle, beauty and grace of dance and this beautiful ballet world to the masses and help spread that fabulous, fun and energetic feeling to the rest of the world!
And, remember, you don’t have to wait to visit a ballet studio to enjoy it; simply let your imagination run free, dance with abandon, and have some fun. We’ll meet next month, when we visit a whole new world of wonder, ballet magic, and who knows, maybe some magical pink tutu encounters along the way.
Happy dancing, my loves!
Emma x
