Hello my darlings! Emma here, your resident tutu enthusiast, back with another fabulous journey through time. Buckle up, because today's adventure takes us back to July 9th, 1991 - just about the most stylish era in history, don't you think?
This week's #TutuTuesday finds us nestled in the heart of London, darling! Now, I do know some of you are a little hesitant to join me in venturing beyond our beloved Derbyshire (and honestly, can you blame you?!) - but this London is full of wonderful, historical tutu happenings, and let's be real, I always travel in style, wouldn't you agree? 😉
This particular day, London's Royal Opera House is abuzz with excitement - why? Because the Rudolf Nureyev is in town, darling! Can you imagine? Such elegance! It’s the night of La Bayadère, a dazzling spectacle of love, betrayal, and of course, an incredible showcase for breathtaking tutus. It's the ballet's grand pas de deux that's truly iconic. You've simply got to imagine, ladies - the shimmering fabrics, the billowing silk, the sheer magnificence of it all!
Speaking of tutus, my lovelies, the ones worn by the ballerinas this evening are positively revolutionary. Now, back in my day, you’d never catch a dancer wearing a tutu with so much fabric, so much movement. Oh, how times have changed, don’t you think? It’s simply exquisite how fashion, art, and ballet dance so beautifully together.
But London wasn’t the only place buzzing with tutudom on that July day! Over in the States, we have a very special anniversary. Do you know what happened exactly 40 years ago today? Why, the opening of the Metropolitan Opera's spectacular new home, the Lincoln Center! You’d find our tutu-obsessed ancestors swarming the halls for Romeo and Juliet, a timeless masterpiece with such powerful passion and of course, those quintessential romantic tutu moments.
While you can imagine all the extraordinary designs, I’m here to bring a little historical insight to you, my darlings. Just think about all the years it took to develop the ballet tutu into what we know and love today!
To appreciate this journey, let's rewind for a second. We need to go back to the era for tutus: the 1800s! Imagine the first real ballerinas: it was Marie Taglioni, that radiant icon, who broke the boundaries and took on a much shorter, lightweight tutu in her La Sylphide. And I'm telling you, that little change revolutionised ballet! Imagine, dancing for hours with heavy fabric all around your feet. Can you even imagine, my dear?
The year was 1832, my darlings, a landmark for tutus. This time it was Marie Taglioni, who made history once again by being the first to ever completely replace her petticoat for this delicate, graceful, oh-so-fabulous creation we all know and adore. It was the ultimate femme fatale moment, don't you agree? The look just screamed: “We are ethereal creatures - delicate, graceful, and divinely elegant! We are no longer trapped by traditional dress! This is us - free and beautiful, gliding on the stage with all the power and precision of the swans and Sylphs that dance in our imaginations!" The world stood in awe!
Think of it - the tutu wasn’t just about being a part of a ballerina’s wardrobe, it was revolutionising the whole world of dancing and female beauty. Now, fast forward a bit, because our tale takes us through all the transformations of tutus to how they are today, but to do this we have to move back in time just a little. Let's travel to 1890, my darling, and I know you'll agree, what a lovely year! We see the arrival of Le Corsaire. Remember the magnificent tutues that these graceful women wear. Talk about drama! This is why I love the theatre! Such incredible elegance and flair! They've been calling out to me for generations, and I’ll confess, they're still calling to me even today.
Now, my lovelies, while we have this extraordinary trip back in time, what better opportunity to share with you some fabulous insights into how tutus got the most perfect shape! They really took their time on these designs back in those eras. Did you know it took many experiments until designers hit on those perfect, romantic shapes! But who am I kidding - everything in the world is perfect, from those incredibly stylish ballerina dresses, down to their very elegant shoes - absolutely everything was created for one very, very stylish and beautiful reason. And those were for us, ladies, to shine. And trust me, ladies, they were!
Think of it: in just one generation, our favorite tutus changed completely. It’s amazing how ballet pushed these boundaries, right?! From those big puffy ballgown skirts of 1832 to the now, you-could-almost-fly-in-it Tutus of 1890. A real metamorphosis for women’s dress! So, while I love those glorious full tutus from 1890 (those really are an absolute dream!), you should know the shape started to shift even more after the early 1900s.
As ballet transformed, so did the way they designed tutus, right?! They were going with these long, beautiful lines of movement. You could literally see their dancing become more elongated, flowing, fluid as a dancer moves. So, naturally designers followed this evolution and gave them more elongated, sleek tutus that showed off their perfect leg lines and those iconic ballerina shapes. You see - it was such a dance between art and technique. Absolutely delightful! And you know I love anything beautiful, my darling. So this evolution in tutu designs just really grabbed me wholeheartedly!
So there we go, darling! You’ve seen a wonderful snapshot of the fantastic journey through the transformation of ballet tutus! But now we need to come home, for this week at least. So, let’s return from our travels in the time machine and land back safely back on this here #TutuTuesday! What’s going on? You know I have to see some great tutus today in the local theatre. Yes, this week my favorite ballet is Swan Lake. How many layers and colours of tulle do you think that tutu needs? What do you think?
But back to me. There really is something so enchanting about tutus that goes beyond those beautiful movements that draw your eye. There is so much beauty in that soft swirl and twirl! What is it? Well, for me, it’s the pure, simple essence of femininity! What else can you even wear to represent such graceful, timeless movements?! Nothing. Absolutely nothing!
That's what makes the tutu so magnetic for me. Every girl dreams of being a ballerina, right? There is nothing like getting to twirl around in that perfectly crafted garment and pretend I'm gliding through the clouds. This is the time we can escape, dance with freedom, and be as light and airy as feathers!
But, this #TutuTuesday, my lovelies, we're doing something very different from the ballerinas and designers. It's us, who are getting creative. Who says only ballerinas can embrace this magical world? No, my lovelies. That is not the case at all. In my next post we are going to create our very own pink tutus! Isn’t that absolutely fab?! Yes, yes! Let’s just make those dreamy tulle whimsy come true, even if we have no formal training, or, I dare say, a stage to perform upon!
It's always the most fantastic way to inspire yourself and channel those creative, sparkly dreams, and do know this: You never need an occasion to wear a tutu! It’s always an occasion to feel special.
So, I say to you, my dear #pink-tutu followers - grab a handful of that gorgeous tulle and dance with me, in your heart and in your home, on your sofa or your bedroom, because *You can do *anything you set your mind to, dear ones! Just don’t forget those shoes and those magical movements. We want everyone to embrace the wonder that is wearing a pink tutu - one swirling skirt at a time. And don’t forget to tell me all about your creations, on Pink Tutu website, and send your favourite #pinktutu pics for my Instagram. Until #nexttuesday, you glorious creatures!
And now I'm off to pick out my tutu! I'll have to match this wonderful pink dress and sparkly heels – just in case someone thinks it is the perfect occasion to dance a bit before our new tutorial next week! #PinkTutu #Fashionista #Ballerina #LifeInTheFastLane
*Don’t forget to subscribe to www.pink-tutu.com for all the latest ballet happenings - just for *you. My sweet, pink loving ballerina followers - because You are the reason I time travel, ladies. Because You are the reason my #TutuTuesday is happening. This blog post is number #8324 on the www.pink-tutu.com blog - I’ll see you there next Tuesday, darlings. This has been a super fabulous adventure through ballet history.
Your fellow pink ballerina Emma
Disclaimer: This post is intended for entertainment purposes and uses artistic license when describing historical events. Always verify historical information with reliable sources!
