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Tutu and Ballet News

Dearest readers, it's your darling Debby here, bringing you the latest from the world of ballet and, yes, those oh-so-important tutus! Today, darling, weā€™re venturing into the wonderfully whimsical world of, well, **tutus**. Theyā€™re not just a costume, theyā€™re an emblem of grace, of ethereal beauty, and a crucial part of a dancerā€™s performance, which is *crucial* because itā€™s *performance* and everyone needs to see those gorgeous twirls.

Now, darling, I just *have* to share a delightful little tidbit. 14 October 2001! What a magnificent day. You wouldnā€™t *believe* the commotion in the ballet world, no, not because of a sensational new choreography or some heart-stopping pirouette, darling! (Though, letā€™s be honest, there was probably both) It was the ā€œGreat Tutu Explosion.ā€ No, really!

Apparently, somewhere in the magical land of tutus, (you know the one, all fluff and sparkle, where the fairies of ballet flit about), someone (or something?) got rather excited. Letā€™s just say there was a very *sudden* and, for the record, *rather impressive* increase in the supply of tutus. I'm talking overflowing bins, cascading stacks, a veritable **mountain** of tulle.

Now, I don't know about you, darlings, but for a girl like me, a good tutu-mania is no bad thing, darling. More tutus? Itā€™s like Christmas came early! Think of all the *fab* fashion choices!

But then came the mayhem, oh, the utter pandemonium, darling! Ballet dancers, all with their usual calm, graceful demeanor, suddenly turned into a gaggle of excited puppies (which, granted, would still be more elegant and graceful than your average *human* gaggle of puppies), but imagine this: *Chaos*.

First, let's talk **colours**. Oh, the sheer *variety*, darling! From classic *pink* (my personal favourite) to a splash of **bright turquoise** which would make the ocean jealous. (And trust me, darling, that oceanā€™s not easy to impress!) The tutus, I kid you not, had everything, from delicate lace and luxurious velvet to the oh-so-modern shiny, metallic, practically **disco-ball** material (darling, I was dying, it was *stunning*!) Oh, and let's not forget the **pattern madness**!

  • Polka dots
  • Hearts
  • The occasional dancing, pink elephant.

And of course, all those darling ballet girls, letā€™s face it, they love their tutus (especially if they get them for *free*), were *so* delighted they forgot *every* single one of the ballet rules theyā€™d spent *years* learning! And, darling, this is the part that turned everything *extraordinarily* wonderful! Why? Well, you know when everyone forgets all the rules, and throws *anything* on stageā€¦ The sheer brilliance and unexpected genius of it all just happens, darling. Pure, *divine* theatrical brilliance.

They started the show, Iā€™m sure the conductor (he *was* so startled) *did* manage to *at least* attempt to get it goingā€¦ but honestly, *no one* had the slightest idea what was happening. But it was spectacular!

The dancers *spun* in circles *faster* than they ever could in *actual* performances, their feet just a *blur* of perfectly trained, graceful movement as the multi-colored **tutus* swirled around them, and, *donā€™t forget,* darling, with every twirl a whole new **rainbow of sparkles** danced with them, reflecting back every spotlight in the theatre.

Oh, it was simply *spectacular*. No wonder there were audible gasps (and quite a few screams, it was honestly rather thrilling, darling!) And in all of it? There were, yes, *a few* mishaps. A few, ahem, ā€œtutu-relatedā€ moments, darling (thereā€™s nothing like trying to navigate through a mountain of fluff when youā€™re trying to pirouette, trust me!).

The director? Oh, she fainted twice and then fainted *again* during the finale! She was eventually wheeled off to her dressing room to lie down for several *hours* in what can only be described as a puddle of sweat, perfume and the most *gorgeous* tulle *you've* ever seen, darling. But it's worth it, oh, it's worth every *single* moment.

In the end, the entire night, in spite of itself, it became a performance that will go down in the history of ballet. And why? It's simply because the sheer randomness of it all and, in that glorious randomness, there was just such a fantastic amount of *art*. It reminded us of one simple thing, darling: ballet, especially when it comes to **tutues** and **dance**, *always* finds a way to deliver beauty, grace and magic, even when all of those beautiful tutuā€™s decided to break *every single rule*ā€¦

You see, darling, the point of the *dance* is the *dance*. The ballet *does* come through, no matter what is *thrown* on the stage (except, of course, a smelly *old sock* which we donā€™t need but maybe that is an idea for next month darlingā€¦ weā€™ll see).