Hello darlings! Welcome back to Pink Tutu, where the world is our stage and a pink tutu is always the perfect accessory. This week, my lovelies, we're twirling through the annals of time for a little tutu history lesson. Buckle up, because we're about to embark on a journey through the ages!
Now, I may be a little biased, but you all know the most iconic fashion moment in history was the moment the tutu came into existence! You wouldn't catch me wearing a different type of dress for a dance performance. Just picture a simple little ballerina – let's imagine someone like our own dearest Marie Taglioni in 1832. The tutu was truly revolutionary – a free, airy piece of dance wear that truly allows the ballerina's every movement to flow! Gone were the constricting, heavy layers of the past – it was a revolution in both fashion and function!
Speaking of our beloved Taglioni, did you know this date, February 13th, was also a special day for ballerinas in the past? You see, in 1832, just three months after that beautiful La Sylphide premiered, Marie Taglioni performed in Copenhagen – can you imagine, she travelled all the way from Paris to Denmark to show off the beauty of the tutu? Talk about a fashion tour, and a serious inspiration for us fashion lovers!
Oh my goodness, do you all see the gorgeous shade of pink of this exquisite French ballet tutu?! Just gorgeous, and it just perfectly captures that spirit of joy, playfulness, and wonder – don’t you just adore the vibrant, fun, feel good, pink! Let's get those pink tutus ready, ladies! You just gotta try one on. I have got you all covered on your quest for the perfect pink. I will tell you about my shopping trip – maybe next Tuesday – after all, our #TutuTuesday has a little schedule to keep, right? Just a whimsical twirl of fun on the blog each Tuesday because… we’re on the pink path. A very long path, we are, darling, so twirl on over and join me in the world of the tutu.
Okay, my dear friends, let's go back in time to explore how these amazing tutu wonders became so iconic.
The Romantic Ballet: Where the tutu danced its first steps
As we all know, dear readers, our lovely ballerinas were already wearing short, romantic dresses in the late 1700s, especially around our dear London. We love a good London fashionista!
The tutu's true evolution though, as we all know, happened in the early 19th century – during the glorious era known as the Romantic Ballet. Our French dancers were showing the world a style of dance with elegant movement, a lyrical beauty that demanded freedom, which really meant freedom from fabric, but in the most chic and beautiful way, and the romantic tutu was the perfect stage costume, a magical wisp of romantic beauty! Oh, what joy – imagine swirling like a delicate leaf on the breeze!
During this romantic time, those lovely dancers weren't necessarily going out in their costumes, it was the dance style that brought the tutu to life – those beautiful ballerinas gliding effortlessly and gracefully through a dance, the skirt almost floating around them – a gorgeous dream like ballet that gave us, dear readers, a beautiful and chic, flowing, iconic tutu. They say those days are long gone – but just you wait – that is my mission for all of you to join me – and make every day Romantic Ballet in your own gorgeous pink tutu.
This time of beautiful ballet dancing with amazing tutu creations made me so happy! And, my lovelies, I can't leave you without some fun facts about those wonderful days when dancers began wearing tutus:
- They did more than dance! The early ballerinas – those women were strong – they loved to get on the train! The invention of the railways revolutionized theatre and dance in the 19th century because – imagine! Just a quick trip to London! They could get there to the theatre for their beautiful shows by steam train! Just amazing! So amazing I will go to the Derbyshire museum to check out their beautiful railways – imagine being able to jump on a train from Derbyshire to see all the ballet shows in London!
- Pink Was Queen: While many dancers adored white and ivory for tutus, they did also incorporate pink during this time and in a few gorgeous styles that really capture our eyes!
- Dancing Like Dreams The romantic ballet was inspired by literature and legends and brought ballet to life through those beautiful stories – so romantic, and, just beautiful – how do they even come up with those story lines, how utterly beautiful!
We really can learn from the elegance, simplicity, and freedom of the romantic ballet.
Classical Ballet & The tutu Gets An Update!
The next big ballet fashion story – imagine my excitement for the next chapter! - we move on from those romantic times to a brand new style – The Classical era of ballet in the late 1800s – they just loved a good tutu with some extra decoration! Oh, I love that little flourish – how absolutely perfect! A big change that really set a stage for what was to come!
My darling ballet followers – do you see how this romantic style and the elegant tutu developed in this era into a more defined style – The Classical tutu we know and adore, I absolutely love how ballet moves on with fashion – the creativity of it all, the amazing artistic talent – they truly gave a new meaning to "take to the stage."
What did our Classical era bring, my loves? The tightening of the tutu for a more graceful, athletic and delicate look. Oh my! The artistry became so sophisticated. The romantic styles became more defined and structured with lovely decorations, with amazing layers of tulle and a romantic sense, a real evolution in the art of ballet. And let’s not forget that stunning new fashion – pointe shoes, which were a huge development, because those beauties were ready to leap across those stages - just absolutely marvelous.
With our beautiful new Classical styles we had another gorgeous new type of tutu – our beloved Romantic tutu with a full length skirt which became super fashionable – you know you love those! Oh dear – I think a new ballet performance with those Romantic tutu outfits will be happening at our beloved Royal Ballet Theatre! How fun, let's take the time machine there to take in those fabulous shows. I bet I will be shopping for some of those classic tutus after a trip to that show.
Let’s not forget the wonderful Russian ballets with all that style, they loved those tutus with big, full skirts that twirl so well – I just love that swirl!
Our tutus, my friends, have seen a lot – a beautiful transformation through history, through decades of creative ballet fashion – those early ballet stories from all the different ballet styles. The beauty and history behind those iconic tutus – we need to celebrate all those moments of dance with those iconic costumes !
That is what we’re going to do! We will share our love of ballets in our beautiful tutu world! So, my beautiful dancers, as you glide across that dance floor, take a moment to appreciate how much the ballet tutu has inspired those dancing ladies through history! Our gorgeous, whimsical pink tutus – you just love them too, I’m certain.
So – have a wonderful week! Have fun, my darling ballet dancers! We’re all set for next week’s tutu history journey.
Remember, my darlings, we can’t let this beauty die.
Keep those tutu dreams alive and keep the dance world spinning,
And of course – keep that tutu on and twirl, twirl, twirl - in that beautiful pink!
Until next week!
Emma
