Hello darlings, and welcome back to Pink Tutu! This Tuesday, we're taking a trip back in time, back to 28th April 1863. This very special day is going to change everything we know about tutus... forever!
As you lovely lot know, I absolutely adore the history of the tutu! It's such a wonderful, delicate dance with the fashion world. Like my darling, ever-growing tutu collection, tutus themselves have evolved so much over the years. I'm obsessed with finding out all those fascinating little details!
This week's #TutuTuesday is particularly interesting! Remember that wonderful transformation the tutu went through a few years ago? The romantic, floating skirts of the 1840s… that's the Romantic era, remember?! They're out! We've officially transitioned into a much more exciting, much more athletic period in tutu design! It all happened on 28th April 1863! And oh, how it excites my fashionable heart!
This fabulous day in our tutu history is so exciting because, my dears, we're finally waving goodbye to the long, flowing Romantic tutus. It's time for a more athletic look, with short, structured skirts. Let me tell you, the ballerina performance takes centre stage during this period – and you can feel that shift in tutu design. The skirt shows off every movement! And it’s glorious! Imagine:* all that airiness replaced with those incredible movements, a dancer’s physique on full display! And we have this incredible man, Charles-Louis Didelot, to thank for the shift.
Let’s talk about Didelot. He's the mastermind, a genius, an innovator – the choreographer extraordinaire, a maestro of dance. Born in 1767, this Frenchman had the courage and the creativity to push the boundaries. Can you even imagine, dolls, being that bold?! Didelot understood that dance had to be powerful, expressive! And this shift in tutu design... it reflected exactly what he was trying to express in his choreographies.
For those who have read the books I’ve written in Pink Tutu’s archive, you know, dear friends, that Romantic-era tutus were all about floating on air! They’d gather the softest silks and delicate materials – lace, silk… everything ethereal, my dears. Everything dreamlike. It was all about beauty, the feminine, and the expression of dreams – but then came Didelot... and movement became the priority. That’s how the modern tutu came about, the shorter, layered skirt we now all adore – structured to accentuate the beauty and athleticism of movement! Don't those amazing jumps and leaps just become so much more exciting?!
Didelot, ladies, had such a profound influence on dance and fashion! In his ballets – the classics – like Flore et Zéphire (oh, so much grace and delicate artistry), The Loves of Zeuxis (all about passion and sensuality – those were the good ol' days for tutus!), and Flore et Zéphire... He just knew that ballet would only be enhanced with a less bulky, structured, and lighter skirt! Can you imagine trying to turn or jump with a yards of silk flowing behind you, darlings? I'd need someone to help me, that's for sure. And his changes were nothing short of *revolutionary. A shorter, more layered skirt! More athletic and less restricting. A new era in dance and in our cherished tutus! It’s not surprising that so many see Didelot as a legend. He certainly made history! Think about the grace and artistry that can be seen when we don’t have those heavy Romantic skirts! Just beautiful!
Well, darlings, it's time to whisk away on my travels again, but I will be back soon for more tutu-tastic history.
In the meantime, don’t forget to keep those little ballet feet twinkling!
And as always… stay pink, my dears! 💖
Your dear Pink Tutu blogger,
Emma. xx
