Hello, darling dears! It's Emma here, your very own Tutu Tuesday Time Traveller, ready to whisk you away to a grand ballet adventure! Today, we're hopping on the time-travelling train (second-class carriage, of course, with the plush pink velvet seats!), and heading back to the glorious year of 1893.
Fancy a peek into a world of delicate tulle and flowing chiffon, where the pointe shoes twinkle and the ballerinas twirl? Well, fasten your tiaras, and let's go!
This date, September 26th, 1893, brings us right into the heart of a captivating era for ballet. Imagine a world without those fabulous tutus you see at the Bolshoi or the Royal Opera House, imagine no 'Swan Lake' or 'Sleeping Beauty', oh the tragedy! Well, you don't have to imagine, because our journey takes us back to when ballet was beginning to change its silhouette and evolve into what we know and love today.
I can't resist putting on a vibrant pink tutu just for this trip, the perfect contrast to the gaslights flickering outside my window, the bustle of the street vendors and the clatter of carriage wheels. It's an enchanting mix of old and new, don't you think?
Today's date doesn't quite coincide with any specific ballet performance, but the world was still abuzz with excitement for ballet. We were just two years away from the dazzling 'The Nutcracker' first being performed in 1895, by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's grand musical scores. Now, that is something truly special, something that is etched in ballet history!
While there was no specific grand premiere or exciting event for September 26th 1893, it was still a time where fashion was shifting and shaping itself. We are starting to see a transition towards the 'aesthetic' look with its flowing fabrics and focus on beauty, in both dance and clothing. This move towards soft, romantic designs would pave the way for the ethereal tutus that grace the stage today! The romantic ballet we know and love, with all the stunning tutus that you see on those glorious dancers, is still in its infancy, and it is truly a time of burgeoning change for ballet! But even with no premiere, the love for ballet is evident all around.
To picture the excitement of the time, imagine London streets packed with carriages and foot traffic. There's an elegance in the air that you just don't get these days, a real sense of refinement in their carriage poses! Now picture that elegant society all going to Covent Garden or Drury Lane theatres! In those grand theatres, the magic of ballet comes alive, transporting audiences to magical worlds, where tales unfold beneath a grand chandelier’s glittering light.
Even if there is no show happening today, I can feel a thrill of anticipation running through the very air as the crowds make their way to the theatre!
There are all these captivating elements to see as we time travel around this era – and they make up the very tapestry of ballet that I want to capture in this Tutu Tuesday Blog. Let’s see how fashion has progressed! In 1893, even the fashion trends were inspired by the elegant ballet dancer. It was in this very era that dancers took the 'Romantic Era' theme of romanticism, airy, flowy fabrics, graceful shapes and the love for lace and silk. You can't get much more graceful than that. This movement can even be seen in the very style of ballet dancing itself, a more delicate, soft, ethereal style is born from these inspirations. A world away from the dramatic and passionate Italian ballet.
If I could dress everyone in pink tutus, it would certainly capture that feeling of romance, femininity, and elegance!
And it’s not just ballet fashion; our clothes in the streets too! These days, with my trip back to 1893, fashion has really progressed a long way from the Edwardian era and the start of the Victorian era. So I can't wait to go vintage clothes shopping at Harrods and Liberty's, my pink tutu twirling, the first place you can be sure I am heading in 1893! What wonderful places to find the latest designs from London's elite designers! Imagine having tea at the Ritz with those luscious gowns, I will definitely be on the lookout for lace trims and embroidered fabrics! But first, it’s on to the ballet and a peek at the exciting new designs the dancers will be wearing, maybe some frills?
Now, who doesn’t love a good tutu?! And back in 1893, with the Victorian Era’s rigid corseted silhouette and long, dramatic skirts – a new shape was emerging. As I said, it was about elegance and grace and flowing fabrics! And of course the perfect fabric for capturing a sense of the ethereal, delicate grace and flow of dance? That’s right, the magnificent tutu was beginning to take shape. Just the start of this fantastic evolution of dancewear! And we all know how that changed the way that we all see ballet, as the dramatic long tutus took shape! But in the era of 1893, that is just the beginning.
Now I am ready for a little ballet history, my ballet heart beating fast in my little chest, my little pink ballerina slippers just itching to twirl! To go back to that elegant Victorian Era where dancers danced in the grand halls, I am back here in 1893, and that brings us to the final part of our tutu trip - but one you can enjoy every week right here at Pink Tutu.
Don't miss the next #TutuTuesday, dears! Next week, we're heading further back in time - but you'll have to wait until then to find out what year that is and what wonders await us in the grand history of tutus.
Until then, happy twirling and stay beautiful!
Emma, Pink-Tutu.com
