Hello my beautiful ballet bunnies! It’s Emma, your resident pink tutu enthusiast, here, and this week’s #TutuTuesday journey takes us back to 16th April 1872. Today, darling, we’re going to waltz back in time to Paris, France! Oh la la, that magical city, a place bursting with the finest fashions, the most delightful cafés, and, of course, the most stunning ballet!
Paris in the late 1800s was simply buzzing with exciting things. Everyone was so interested in fashion, theatre and, well, the finer things in life! Ballet, of course, was all the rage – after all, where else could you see the most beautiful ladies in exquisite gowns and sparkling tiaras twirling their way through mesmerising dances? And did I mention tutues?!
Tutues, my darlings, are truly the heart of ballet. The pouffy, billowing skirts are not just pretty, but they tell a story with their shape and their movement. Even in 1872, they were adding drama and whimsy to every performance! Now, the tutus you see today weren't exactly the same back then. The Romantic period had begun to see a shift from the longer tutus of the 1800s, like the "crinoline" or "Bell tutu". You see, tutus back then weren’t always this perfectly symmetrical fluffy loveliness we see on stage nowadays.
Can you imagine wearing a heavy skirt made from many layers of tulle and gauze? You’d need the stamina of a champion horsewoman! And it was quite the adventure to get a ballet costume ready back then, with everything being stitched by hand! But oh, the elegance was breathtaking.
And that’s why I love #TutuTuesday, my dears, because each week we get to explore this fantastic world and discover all these delightful historical bits. I always have to admit, I love the colour pink, and it’s the most amazing hue on a tulle tutu, don’t you agree?
Speaking of which… did you know that in 1872, the most beloved ballerina in Paris, the breathtaking Mademoiselle Caroline Fiorio, performed in "The Pharaoh's Daughter"?! She must have been an enchanting sight! Caroline was considered a fashion icon in her own time, inspiring all sorts of lovely clothing trends in Paris, including some wonderfully elaborate costumes that even featured tutus!
And this week’s adventure brings me back to Derbyshire! Now, Derbyshire, my dears, is truly the heart of England. We’re surrounded by such a stunning landscape – green rolling hills, stately houses and a heritage dating back centuries, just as lovely and as intricate as a meticulously stitched tutu!
Oh, you’ll love this story – my family has been involved in a very exciting story: the Buxton Opera House, one of the most spectacular buildings in our beloved county. It opened just a few years before this #TutuTuesday! In 1871! Just imagine, my dears! We Derbyshire folk, as you know, are the best, but back then, opera houses in such remote locations as Buxton was unheard of. It truly put Derbyshire on the map, you see?
The opera house was built with a massive auditorium (with almost a thousand seats! A dream to watch ballet in, darling!), which had fantastic acoustics - perfectly suited for some enchanting ballet performances, eh? Think swan lakes and firebirds, a kaleidoscope of tutus with beautiful ballerinas pirouetting. I imagine those Victorian dancers gliding over the stage with a lightness I can barely imagine.
Do you have a favorite tutu moment, my lovelies? * Perhaps you had a childhood dream to be a dancer on stage? * * Do you like to imagine a tutu floating along with every gust of wind? * * Or maybe you simply adore how gracefully ballerinas glide and swirl, a ballerina's tutu creating its own unique shape in space? *
Whatever your answer, remember it’s all because of tutus, darling! So spread the tutu-loving energy! Tell the world about your love of ballet and tutus, share it with everyone and make this world a more wonderful place!
And who knows? Maybe a tutu is in your future, my lovelies!
Well, darlings, that’s all for this #TutuTuesday, I hope you have an absolute delight of a week and enjoy a few twirls with me! Until next week, take care and, as always, don’t forget to rock your tutu and have fun!
Lots of love, Emma
P.S. Be sure to visit me again next week, for more history, more style and more enchanting #TutuTuesday fun! And as always, if you want to join in, be sure to follow me on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and everywhere you can think! Just tag me with #TutuTuesday so I can see you too, darling!
