Greetings, fellow tutu enthusiasts!
It's your favourite pink tutu-clad time-travelling ballerina, Emma, back for another #TutuTuesday! Today we're waltzing our way back to September 1st, 1891 - can you believe it?! I just love delving into the past and discovering the evolution of our beloved ballet tutu. Itās such a vital part of ballet history! Of course, you know that I always travel by train when I can, such a magical way to travel!
Before we dive into our journey, a quick reminder to visit my blog, www.pink-tutu.com. If you want to know about fashion, ballet and, most importantly, tutus, thatās where I post all my fun tips and travel discoveries! My last trip was to Paris for fashion week. All the fabulous shows were absolutely breathtaking! Shopping there is simply sublime! It would be rude not to. It is Paris, after all! The shops are such a joy. And, just a little secret, my train tickets are always funded by a few ballet performances around the world. A dancer's life, as you know! Now, on with the showā¦
Today, let's transport ourselves to the year 1891. Itās an exciting time in ballet history! You may remember from previous #TutuTuesday posts, that this era was full of innovation, beautiful dresses, and dramatic leaps! Imagine being at the Paris Opera for a show on this day. Now thatās the life!
This very day in 1891, the French ballerina, Marie Taglioni, a true star of the dance world at the time, performed the enchanting āLa Sylphideā at the Paris Opera.
Now, Marie Taglioni is considered a legend. She is credited with influencing the world of ballet through the adoption of pointe shoes and the introduction of the lightweight, romantic tutu. A revolutionary style of the time. Her tutus had a huge impact on the silhouette, the line, and the beauty of movement. This elegant skirt helped to redefine dancing styles. What a stylish choice. Can you imagine performing a ballet with all the fabric of a classic dance dress? Marie Taglioni is an icon for good reason. Her tutus will always have their place in ballet history. But who can forget our own English ballerinas! Oh, yes. So very stylish!
Our own English Ballet stars of 1891.
Here in the UK, the ballet scene was blooming with talent. Our ballerinas were elegant and elegant, but not to be outdone. We are in good company here in Derbyshire with some fabulous talented girls who went on to grace the big stages of Europe. The first dancer, a stunning performer with incredible poise and poise and elegance ,was none other than Cora Maud Allyn. Remember the name, girls. The lady did herself proud and travelled the world performing ballet to acclaim. I can't believe what a star she was at such a young age! I can just picture her with the same elegant moves, dancing a romantic tutu onstage, she was stunningly stylish! Now, I know what you're thinking. Why wasn't her tutu pink? I would like it to be. Sadly, itās an easy mistake, pink just wasn't very common in ballet wear back then. In fact, some of our ballet performances, especially around that period had dancers wearing beautiful costumes in all sorts of amazing colours. Think gold, think black, think silver and dark redsā¦ just a fashion statement of a different era. However, remember, as the leading expert in tutu time-travelling, that ballet tutus began to come into vogue after this period and pink started appearing on stage, as the 1900's blossomed!
Cora's success is a story in itself! This English rose, blossomed on the stage of our nationās grandest theatre, Covent Garden, then she spread her wings and performed in Germany, Austria and the USA. Such a travelling spirit, and to think, she may have been performing right on that same stage that we saw all those gorgeous ballets!
Now, the year 1891 marked a big milestone in the dance world: the emergence of the ballet-loving royal family. Now this is something else. They were famous for supporting the arts. With interest growing for the Royal Ballet Company ( which formed later, in the 1900ās) this is a massive event. Imagine. You could have seen Queen Victoria at a ballet. But our queenās heart didnāt only lie with the elegant tutus on stage, no, the queen, herself, took an active part in this periodās theatrical culture, supporting musicians and designers! The art scene in Victorian London, really blossomed as this family got involved and you could find royalty and famous performers together. This was the time that everyone knew the names of ballet dancers. Remember our famous stars? Now there was another name who shone at this time, a stunning young lady by the name of Ailsa Claxton. She went on to join a professional ballet company in London in the early 1900ās, so think about thisā¦ we are getting closer to a new style and more colour! But, we know this will change.
Let's move onto our Ballet Style History for this week. As mentioned, the 19th century was all about the Romantic era! Think about the elegance of āGiselle.ā We even saw tutus at this time designed by the French dressmaker and ballet star** - Marie Taglioni! Youāve just got to love her name and her fashion sense, I hope you don't mind, but when it comes to dancing tutus, Marie Taglioni is definitely my idol! She is a legend. Just imagine dancing like herā¦ such beauty and such elegance in all those wonderful long tutus. The āSylphideā ballet itself changed how ballet dancers would dress in the years to come, bringing a newness and elegance that was admired by both the audiences and dancers of the time! With every performance, audiences embraced new and elegant moves, especially en pointe, and they embraced long swirling tutus, in place of a short, cumbersome classical ballet skirt.
I simply love this era! The dancers were elegant and the ballet stories just beautiful and so graceful. Remember we saw all this new ballet style changing after the rise of Russian ballet and this era of Romantic ballet with a move towards new techniques, such as the dramatic āPas de Bourreeā where a group of dancers would perform as a unity onstage with their perfectly balanced choreography - this was a real move for change! You see how all the ballerinas had to work so hard to stay synchronized!
Fashion and Tutu - my love for shopping!!
Can you even imagine walking through Covent Garden in this time? Oh how I would love to have travelled with those fashionable ladies, I bet shopping in this period, would have been so stylish! So, remember this - all this romantic movement that you can see in some of those amazing films - think about all those incredible tutus.
How are your tutus today?
As always, be sure to post a photo of you in your pink tutu. Don't forget to share this post using the #TutuTuesday hashtag and remember to keep an eye out on my website - www.pink-tutu.com! And donāt forget that a little pink tutu goes a long way. Thereās no stopping you! And with this fabulous day and month, Septemberās here! Happy Tutu Days, everybody! And see you all next weekā¦ same time, same placeā¦ in the land of tutus, Iām hoping for an elegant white tutu. My favourite!
