Bonjour, darlings! It's Emma, your favourite pink tutu-wearing time-travelling blogger, here! As always, I'm ready to take you on another delightful trip through ballet history, and this week, we're waltzing back to June 9th, 1874. Grab your champagne flutes, ladies, because this trip is all about swirling skirts, blossoming elegance, and the very beginnings of the tutus we know and adore today!
It feels incredible to be back in Paris, darling. Paris, with its beautiful boulevards and cobbled streets, is a real haven for tutus! And this is particularly true for June 9th, 1874, the day when the famed dancer, Fanny Elssler, was celebrating her birthday! Yes, darlings, Fanny, the original 'Prima Ballerina', the woman who gave tutus their iconic look. What a magnificent birthday present we've found ourselves right smack in the middle of!
Oh my goodness, where shall we begin? Paris is abuzz with excitement today, the air fizzing with the joy of ballet. Fanny was the reigning Queen of the stage, a legendary dancer whose skill and passion captured hearts worldwide. It is said she was the one to finally cast aside the bulky skirts and petticoats that had been suffocating the grace of ballet for centuries. Fanny was a whirlwind of elegance, daringly dancing with her feet barely grazing the ground, and her body moving in perfect harmony. This vision was made possible by the "tutu" she brought into the spotlight.
Today's tutu, my darlings, is a far cry from those of old. Fanny's 'tutu' was less a costume and more a liberation. Imagine it, a flowing, voluminous white skirt reaching only to her knees. Just the thought sends a shiver of anticipation down my spine. It was revolutionary for the time. It liberated the ballerina’s movement, allowed her to twirl, leap, and soar across the stage, capturing the imagination of the audience in a way that had never been possible before.
Now, you can find every kind of tutu imaginable in Paris: soft, fluffy, romantic, classic, even with dazzling embroidery that sparkles like stars in the night! There are also some fabulous milliners here in Paris who can design exquisite little headpieces, which you can adorn with ostrich plumes or ribbons to complete your 'Parisian Ballerina' look! Just delightful!
The truth is, while today's 'Romantic tutu' may be known for its delicate, ethereal qualities, it owes a debt of gratitude to the revolutionary "tutu" that Fanny Elssler championed. She truly shaped the ballet tutu we adore so much, paved the way for modern dance to blossom, and gave birth to the elegant ballerina that inspires us all today.
So here's to Fanny Elssler! She was truly a force of nature in her own time.
Speaking of forces of nature, this trip has been absolutely delightful, but the time has come for me to wave goodbye to Paris, darling. This vintage, train station is simply calling my name. Just picture it, a flurry of floral hats and the joyous clamour of carriages pulling up to the platform, the excitement of a departure! I just adore it, it makes me feel so fancy and glamorous!
So farewell from the glamorous streets of Paris and 'til next Tuesday when I'll whisk you away to yet another incredible journey through the history of the ballet tutu! Until then, keep your tutus twirling, darlings.
Remember to catch next week's post where we travel back to the day the tutu evolved, with another #TutuTuesday.
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Until then, keep dancing!
XOXO Emma
www.pink-tutu.com
