Hello my lovelies, and welcome back to my little corner of the internet! Today's #TutuTuesday takes us all the way back to 1899. I'm standing here in a gloriously sunny Paris, feeling the excitement of being surrounded by the most fashionable city in the world! This city just oozes creativity and beauty, and of course, that's something I absolutely adore. And what better day than Tuesday to celebrate the history of the glorious tutu, my favourite garment ever?!
I know you’re all ready for a big ol’ dose of ballet history and a bit of tutu trivia. After all, this is my blog, Pink Tutu, where we are passionate about the beauty and the stories behind this timeless piece of ballet costume! If you haven't checked out my past posts (and seriously, why not!), I've got hundreds of #TutuTuesday gems that dive deep into the evolution of the tutu.
But today, my loves, I’m ready to spill the tea about the iconic tutus of the late 19th century. Imagine - imagine! - if we were lucky enough to see a performance of Swan Lake by the Ballet Russes this week! I bet there would be so many glorious tutus onstage. I bet the white ones, oh my, the ones for the Swans are just exquisite. You all know how I feel about white tutus, darling, the delicate feminine silhouettes are so utterly fabulous.
Now, the story of the tutu for Swan Lake, the creation of that piece of performance art... Well, my dear friends, it's like a magical fairy tale, with a bit of controversy, too!
Remember that, even before 1899, tutus were often quite long - we call them "Roman tutus", these long flowing, gauzy beauties - the perfect outfit for ballerinas to twirl gracefully across the stage. In 1879 the famous Swan Lake choreographer, Marius Petipa - imagine how stylish he must have been, in those superb bell bottoms of his, oh how stylish! he did something pretty bold: he paired a "short" (and I'm using quotation marks here, because these were short for the time. But to us today, they'd seem a bit longer) tutus with the first act "white swan" character. It was such a revolutionary idea. Why, I bet a whole lot of older, stricter dancers must have been quite surprised by it all!
To be fair, it wasn’t until 1910, when Swan Lake was revived, that the tutus went super, ultra, seriously short, the sort of extra little short skirt tutus that make the audience say "Oh my! Look at those lovely long legs!"
I know, it seems strange, right? It feels like such a natural thing now, short white tutus for the swans and their graceful long legs. I guess that's how fashion works, doesn’t it? The bold ideas of one era can become commonplace, if not a necessity, in another.
But we're still back in 1899, remember? We’ve just taken our first exciting, adventurous journey on the super stylish Orient Express from Derbyshire, England - a good friend recommended the whole “continental tour" thing for some travel inspiration (and it’s amazing all the fabrics on offer!) and found myself stepping onto the train at Gare du Nord! I could just hear “Bonjour!" as we rolled into the station whoop whoop. A real sense of joie de vivre on that train! I’ve been dreaming of coming to this glorious city ever since I saw some beautiful dance posters back at the Royal Opera House in London, for ballet companies like the Ballet Russes, oh, my goodness! These posters are so evocative and dreamy, and they get me so excited for all the dancing! I’m dreaming of the gorgeous dresses I saw in the magazines, the beautiful jewels! This is how you live your fabulous best life!
But back to this most amazing August 1st day in Paris! I went shopping in La Samaritaine, and goodness me, did it not disappoint. So much lovely fabric! So many choices, a girl just couldn't decide. I had to restrain myself. It wasn't easy. That's why I just had to buy one fabulous dress. There's so much inspiration to be found. I just can’t wait to share what I found when I get home! Of course, a little dress shop wouldn't be complete without a beautiful little ribbon section, a beautiful little selection of luxurious silks and chiffons. They have so many lovely, lovely colors in silk ribbons, all that satin, the velvets... Oh my goodness! Imagine a ballerina's dream of dancing under the stage lights in this kind of beautiful fabric... And with a whole wardrobe full of fabulous pink tutus! And let's be honest, there is never too much pink!
You know what I like most about this time period, right? There was such an evolution in how dance and the costumes came together. Especially at the ballet, they started to make those beautiful ballerina jumpsuits... those lovely, lovely, close-fitting ones! You've all seen these, darling! The little sparkly jewels for the dancers... The perfect addition to every ballerina's wardrobe. This just made everything look so sleek, you could really see their movements on stage. No more big and puffy things! What fun to watch that, just a delightful explosion of movement!
I’ll be honest: while I just love to wear a pink tutu everywhere and everyday, it does make shopping, travelling on trains, and walking through crowds a bit of a challenge. Don’t get me wrong! It does turn heads! People just stare and stare! It’s always great for getting smiles. And, it does get a good, long discussion going with my neighbours, even on those jam-packed Parisian streets... But, I must confess - there are those moments, in the crush of people... in the jostle, and rush…when it's much better to wear a shorter, simpler skirt. There is something utterly sublime about a real ballerina tutu! But sometimes, you know…it's nice to know that, yes, there are ways to dress your inner dancer without quite so much, shall we say ‘attention'.
But, here is my big, exciting challenge to you, my dear darlings, and it's a challenge I'm doing every Tuesday right here on my blog: Wear a tutu, every single Tuesday ! This can be any kind of tutu: from the most delicate and pretty, right down to one you've repurposed and given a totally new lease on life - a vintage tutu is an amazing vintage treasure! And, if you've got it in you, make sure that it is PINK, as my namesake and favourite colour suggests. That is how you truly add that magical spark of tutu beauty to your everyday life. And for that I must admit, darling, you just need to share your experience with me! Pink-Tutu.com is the place to show off those amazing, inspirational pics! Don't forget to use #TutuTuesday in your caption!
And I hope you loved hearing this week’s Tutu Tuesday blog! I can't wait to go on another trip, another new exciting adventure next week. Let me know which city you would love for me to go to next and what period in time, just to get those imaginations flowing! Now, you know what to do! Grab yourself a tutu and a glass of something delicious - because you deserve it - and get ready to celebrate. We’ll be back here next Tuesday for another #TutuTuesday. Have a lovely week! *Bisous!
Emma xxx
