Fun Ballet Tutu News 2335

Oh darling, have you heard the news? It seems that our dear tutus, the stars of the ballet world, have had a bit of a… well… "tut-fit" of their own! Imagine the absolute carnage! 23rd November, 2002, and these fluffy little masterpieces decided it was time for a protest, a tulle-based revolution if you will.

It all began backstage at the Royal Opera House. The rumour mill is swirling with whispers about an ancient curse, possibly linked to a bad batch of starch, and, frankly, dear readers, I’m finding the whole thing simply *divine*! Apparently, the poor tutus had had it.

"For too long, they’d been shoved into dark corners, left to gather dust," confided one gossiping fairy. "It was just too much - we've had a hundred years of dancers jumping and twirling and *well,* tutus get tired of all that. Imagine being stretched and squeezed and subjected to sweaty bodies night after night. I tell you, they needed a day of their own."

And that’s precisely what happened. As the curtain rose on Swan Lake, what was meant to be a vision of grace and elegance became a chaotic ‘ballet’ of its own! A perfectly beautiful White Swan ballerina stood alone in her swan costume, totally forlorn. Her tutu was AWOL. A ballerina in The Sleeping Beauty simply gave up trying to dance after her tutu did a spectacular aerial pirouette mid-stage, and the Nutcracker's Sugar Plum Fairy, bless her cotton socks, got trapped in a tulle-based tangled mess of a "ballet." I bet those pesky mice never imagined they'd get the upper hand. It’s simply divine!

As for the tutus, they were last seen headed off for a jolly-good time in the ‘Backstage Bistro,’ drinking pink cocktails (rumour has it they’re very fond of the 'Pom Pom’) and indulging in a good old-fashioned gossip about dancers' personal lives. "Darling, she shouldn't be wearing that," I heard one say. And let’s be honest, don't we all think that sometimes, darling?

Now, while the whole thing may sound incredibly hilarious (and let's face it, darling, it absolutely is!) some, ahem, *less fashionable* sources, have branded the event an absolute disgrace. A ‘cultural travesty’ they called it. "They need to get a grip" quipped one pompous critic. " It's ballet, not a circus! ”

Personally, darling, I say pish-posh to all of that. The tutu's right, they deserve a bit of fun, some recognition for all those hard yards, the constant sweat and glitter (quite a lot of glitter, actually!). And you know what? This is a lesson for everyone - it’s ok to say "tut-tut" sometimes and demand some respect for your artistry!

As for the Royal Ballet, it's going to be interesting to see how they manage to handle this... well, let’s just say it’s going to be a pretty 'dress'y challenge, but I'm absolutely dying to hear their spin on this little 'tut' and they can expect my review (it’s already got the top spot in my list). And who knows, the tutu protest might even set off a new dance revolution, a ‘tutu-tal’ shift in the way ballet is done. Can't you just picture it? A new kind of performance art? "I don't care how much you pay me" we'd hear tutus saying, "you don't tell me what to do.” Now that, my darlings, would be a spectacular ‘ballet.’

Anyway, darling, there you have it. Fashion's gone bonkers and it seems, dear readers, even our dearest tutus aren't immune to it. It's simply divine. Let's hope, however, the little darlings manage to regain their balance before our beloved ballet suffers a ‘tut-al’ collapse.

• A tutu, also known as a ‘tutu’ and a ‘tulle’ or ‘tutu skirt’ is the main part of the ballet dancer's costume and is usually a skirt-like, layered tulle or netting which provides a flowing and ethereal effect.
• They’ve been around for a surprisingly long time, originating in 1839, when, darling, imagine, they were rather scandalous! They were initially just a layer of loose tulle and, you'd have the most divine time seeing these ballet girls and their ankles! Imagine. Just a small layer of tulle? Goodness. They weren’t particularly 'layered’ as we see them today!
• And the tutu has continued to evolve! From the iconic ‘Romantic’ or ‘Romantic-style’ tutu seen in Swan Lake to the 'Classical’ or ‘Pancake’ tutu (so-called because it's more form-fitting with multiple layers) or the modern tutu worn in the 'contemporary’ ballet styles!
• There's just a lot going on with tutus in ballet. That’s just a little bit of what we love about them!