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#TutuTuesday Ballet Tutu History on 2023-10-10

#TutuTuesday Ballet Tutu History: Post 10007 - 2023-10-10

Hello darling tutus! It's your favourite pink tutu-wearing blogger Emma, here from my little pink palace in the heart of London, ready to transport you back in time! I’m wearing a gloriously sparkly pink tutu, complete with a tulle bustle for a touch of old Hollywood glamour! It's giving me total "dancing on clouds" vibes! I think today’s journey is going to be extra fabulous.

You’re all well acquainted with the idea that a ballet tutu is, in effect, a sort of historical dress-up box, but today we’re going to visit the late 18th century! That’s right – the period of Mozart, Marie Antoinette, and powdered wigs! Can you imagine trying to get dressed every morning in such a costume?! My morning routine consists of maybe a quick hair tie for my bun, a dab of rouge, and – of course – my pink tutu! But for you fashionable 18th-century beauties, it must have taken ages! I love this period, and the history is super interesting! *My latest book tells the tale of a French lady, very much a "Madame de Pompadour" type, who is whisked off by the French army to live with the King of Persia who fancies himself an admirer of her art. I do hope this time machine allows me to experience some exotic history - it may just inspire my next dress! *

Today in Ballet History...

Remember how the #TutuTuesday blogs began in 19th Century London? This is where the ballet tradition as we know it really kicked off - especially with the lovely ladies in those romantic tutu skirts with all that extra layers and ruffles... Well, 2023-10-10 is a particularly exciting date in our story of the tutu – on this day in 1854 the first ever “pas de deux” was danced in Paris! You see, it wasn't just all dramatic leaps and pirouettes - that’s what we have these fancy solo dances and choreographed moves to show off those tutus and incredible dance skills! It wasn't till that first 'pas de deux' in 1854 that those amazing twirls for two took centre stage! Think “Romeo and Juliet”, darling tutus! Can you picture them gracefully intertwining, showcasing those iconic tutus, spinning like a dream?!

I don’t want to tell you to rush out and find some partners (although the ballet class today does look extra full with the fellas - maybe I'll go say hi! ) because even before this 19th Century “Pas de Deux” – dancing pas de deux had been happening all over the world – just look at those court dances! They were dancing with a partner for centuries! But the choreographers just started to incorporate the duet style in Paris for a big show in the 1800s. So maybe it wasn't actually the first pas de deux ever - just a historical moment that really brought those solo dances together in a very elegant and dramatic style.

I think the late 19th century must have been magical – especially with all those big theatre productions and romantic ballets being performed with all those tutus in those grand ballrooms – like a scene out of a beautiful fairytale! The Parisian culture had taken to dancing as a means to socialize, socialize, socialize! This was the time period of “salon” dance styles - imagine swirling, waltzing,* and even polka-ing in your ballgown with your top knot – the era that inspired* all of the dances we love and even take classes in now.

So, to this date, every October 10th I take a moment and celebrate how those two ballerinas - I think it was just one male dancer with two ballerina soloists, all dressed to the nines and spinning on the stage in a theatrical masterpiece, changed history with a romantic moment on the Paris stage . This is exactly the sort of thing that we need more of in the world today - a touch of beauty, glamour and romance to soften even the most dramatic dance - because everyone can learn from each other in these magical ways! I mean, that’s why you have ballet, my tutus. Dancing as an art and as a social form for all the dancers - even those “ballet dudes!” I'll have to get them into pink tutus some time. * Pink can work on the lads too, darling! And I know that a tutu doesn’t have to be pink. It can be the color of all your dreams!*

Let's Travel Back in Time - 1787 - Let’s go back to the late 18th Century - to 1787 – the Year of the First Tutu!!

I need to stop giggling, you will think I am the silly blogger I really am. That must be the effect of this tutu – all those layers, especially in pink, makes one giggly, like I am all giggles now. Let’s just stick with the historical details.

That's right - no tutus before 1787! The ladies would have had what is now called the ‘contrebasse’, *a fancy name, I’ll give them that! This skirt – it was essentially just one huge, full, elegant piece of fabric all around! It covered everything – like the huge skirt styles from the Victorian period - *really dramatic. It was pretty - and probably made them quite hot as they moved about the theatre!

I need to find this style for myself - all that fabric would surely get more looks at my favourite Covent Garden shop!

Well, darling, we've been seeing counterbase skirts and full ball gowns at the ballets and operas in England and in Paris - think Mozart and the opera - it’s the era where women just started to move to a more “active lifestyle” of social dance and that also coincided with women getting involved in what they wore! This movement must have really helped move ballet skirts and stage costumes away from just ‘the traditional dress’ – all about a look but less about movement! Then, here came a new Italian choreographer.

This is important for my fashion history, my little tutus, He called his work "La Sylphide". What happened with La Sylphide? This Italian gentleman was the one who is credited with putting ballet on the stage for all to see. Can you imagine the gasp? This is exactly what I am working on: finding that perfect historical detail to capture attention! You see, in the ballet “La Sylphide”, our lovely ballerinas - because only lovely women would be dancing on stage for that kind of money in 1787 – **were all wearing new short tutus with tiers.

And I'll bet they looked incredible! It's not about “what looks good" - it's all about that freedom to move and create amazing stage performances with the beauty of their movement and, of course, their exquisite dress! * This ballet was performed *in London, not Paris. London and Paris always competing to be on top – can't be too different to the *present-day London to Paris, * but at this point they all admired the *style and grace in both cities, and they went out of their way to show their fashion pride! They'd travel on train and, I bet, by the fanciest *ships, to visit each other for these special shows. I bet the English folks had to do with *“La Sylphide,” because they took to wearing these tutus straight after that dance debuted in the UK. I’ve even got my copy of *the history about this ballet! What makes the history extra special is that La Sylphide* was actually *not the most successful ballet debut in Paris - it wasn’t a huge hit, so think about how much people like this style for this to catch on! * I have to try to wear it - for an upcoming fashion shoot! The photographer might love to catch my *new look in London’s Covent Garden, so we will do it for my next shoot!

The Early Years: What Does the Perfect Ballet Tutu Look Like?

Remember - ballet wasn’t like it is now, so this type of tutu has evolved over the last two hundred and something years - a little over two hundred - two-and-a-half maybe?? It was just starting in the 18th Century, with these lovely women trying to move, *but that *movement, the choreographers wanted more fluid and grace on stage. So you get your “romantic” era, my lovely tutus! What is romantic and lovely in a tutu style? I like that romantic flair - the big fabric layers and lots of ruffles – all the lovely details and tiers of a more “old style” look. There is so much creativity out there! In ballet, there’s a great example: *The “romantic” tutu came onto the stage *for about 100 years - from 1787 until around 1880, and for good reason!

So what does that “perfect ballet tutu” look like - especially for those romantic eras? You can probably imagine – big, big, big and layers - think “The Sleeping Beauty” and you will have a good visual for the “romantic ballet” tutu. You have lots of big layered fabric in that style - about four to six layers – enough layers to make those big graceful twirls so you can have your dancing in these full tutus, and all in that lovely period look, all graceful. It also needed to be very light, as you had dancers wearing full length sleeves or elbow length - these layers were more in style – even the ladies in this era just weren't used to a lot of arm movement because it could damage that elaborate hair-do, so all the movement on the stage was about leg movements – lots of them. This meant those leg lifts and the ballet twirls - with tons of extra layers *for that romantic look. * You can almost see the dancer doing it right there in your mind now, can't you! And we are just starting this amazing evolution!

If you thought ballet history was only about dancing and a certain look for a costume - the history actually really ties into what's going on around the world, including our British Derbyshire, in my little country manor near the Dales! It's a little cooler on these grey days in Derbyshire, so I put on a couple more layers for today - but the look can be so elegant!

I can't get over this! In ballet history, the world really just started understanding that women really needed the freedom to dance, and their clothing style needs to be light, free and flexible! Well, a full ball gown, like those found in those classic opera ballets, or the dresses for fancy dances, wouldn’t exactly help that, would it! Those Victorian ball gown and opera-style dresses with big, fancy fabric ruffles, corsets and lots of tight laces? Ugh, how uncomfortable!! I have this really comfy Victorian dress in one of my dress collections, that I adore, but only wear on special days out with friends when I just want to walk through a London market and have the time of my life in an incredible period-look! And if you look at some of the older photographs – there was *a lot of the “courtly” style from this period still happening around the late 1800s when ballet began to explode – especially in England and then throughout Europe – think about that, *the first world war, just about ten years before all of the changes that changed everything in ballet - so important!

For a couple of decades, in the early years before the Victorian period ended, ballet went on to the world stage - and the French and English ballerinas were already really starting to change fashion. In fact - ballet was one of the *main influences that made fashion go in a very modern style, with a looser, simpler form to showcase all those intricate movements. *But, here is a spoiler: *In about 50 years, a big “bang” to those *romantic tutu-look dances - so we have a whole era to work through! * *

Let’s Fast Forward 50 Years - 1830: How Those Tutu Skirts Got Smaller -

This is when I pull out my copy of ‘Fashion History: From Renaissance to Now’. *It helps when you’ve got a travel time machine and you also do some research into these trends for *every year of my ballet history. I bet all of the readers are going through this time journey with me – or is it me just wanting to live my history in every tutu? Is that possible? Anyway, the *Victorian Era came onto the fashion scene at this time - big dress looks with large silhouettes with many fabric tiers in *dramatic fashions! This style became extremely *popular, and this meant that fashion took the shape of very ‘modern, stylish dress skirts’ to show off the beautiful detail of fabric in clothing. All of the designs in skirts were becoming more complicated and detailed, in fact *fashion needed to *capture that dramatic look, with all of these very intricate details that the designers were coming up with in dress styles, and also with stage costumes, too!! *So think “Belle” of *‘Beauty and the Beast!’ That sort of big romantic fashion with lots of big flowing detail - but even though there was that *huge dress look *in society - there was still lots of dancing, you see - and these *fantastically *dress-designed dresses, did not fit for the ballet. In fact – the styles became so extreme in that full ball gown look - the more complex these dress styles, the less movement on stage.

This was a time of change, *especially as the late Victorian era came into *its 19th Century fashion with more elegant styling, with some more detailed pieces of clothing in style - even with the *huge, massive, extra long sleeves and corset, in this era - * but even these very “layered and detailed dresses,” and a couple of different look styles, even those big ruffles *were very limited in movement - it just became too much for dancers – *too bulky and uncomfortable, it was practically un-wearable. Even for a ballerina - you see, for dancing, those extremely detailed skirts, * with the long trains *had to be changed. That is how the early modern style of the *ballets went toward *a look with much less fabric, and those tiny “balletic skirts, with smaller, more *simple tiers - so those very large Victorian gowns were a very major reason for those ballet changes! You think “Sleeping Beauty" style gowns, like *with the *hoop skirt, *those styles are all the rage, but imagine doing ballet with all of that!! This just did *not work, my loves!!*

And that is where the * *Victorian-style skirts began to fade into what is known today as *"the classical ballerina tutu" This is the look that's inspired all the modern day styles – those ballet looks are very simple and elegant with just two or three *layers at the most – no fancy fabric - or at least just a few frills around the hemline to create movement on stage!

This really evolved, darling tutus, the whole "tutu story is a lot of trial and error.* Even in ballet schools now you can see this – especially with students in the "pre-pointe" classes because they still have those larger styles for their skirt that look like a big flower because there is *lots of big fluffy layers! This looks perfect for the ballet style at this level but once they progress *to "pointe shoes, they need those smaller, very, very delicate smaller and more elegant-looking tutus! You see - even *in ballet today those tutus and ballet *practice dresses *are always changing! This is not a static dress that you wear - we always need to tweak that ballet tutu style!

Now this is all a bit technical and about all that fancy footwork, darling tutus, but how about a fun “Did you Know!”

*Did you know that those big “romantic era” ballet tutus *that were around for about 100 years in that era actually still have that same romantic look in most modern-day ballets with their *more *‘traditional styles *or their contemporary, modern dance versions – just in a less complex* look. The style is what we see on a dance stage now, and, of course, I have all the best ballets dresses!

I can’t let you go today without another bit of tutu knowledge, so… “Did you know…?” That, in fact, some people still use the “La Sylphide" *style, as those huge fluffy and full styles look, I *love it, for those romantic *big ball gown style look to give those incredible performances - even though most ballerinas now have “the more modern *classic ballet style" - it’s all very romantic and lovely, really elegant, and looks *super stylish. * I mean - it is *still a show stopper, my tutus!

That’s a quick jaunt into the early years of tutu history. And the journey continues! We all *need those creative steps in those early years to *bring the history forward, and as the ballerina and dance costume continues to evolve *right alongside fashion. You’re probably wondering –* “But, what happens next, Emma?! What kind of tutus come in later years? * We’ll be here for #TutuTuesday next week to tell you all about what happened as we reach *the modern tutu look and, you may be very surprised - just think “classical and beautiful!" The styles will be incredible to see, but those original and romantic skirts and their history - *that started it all, so the styles all continue - because all ballet, even for these modern looks - *needs to be *stylishly elegant, delicate, light, flowing with just *that perfect *touch of drama.

You all be sure to visit me again next week *and don’t be *too shy to tell all of your favourite tutu moments here on the website. Let’s all share these magical dance moments! * I’m out* for a day of shopping on a trip to London and, of course, the ballet classes - *so if you have *any tips on the best tutus to buy for this week in Covent Garden - *I’m all ears, darling tutus! I hope all your #TutuTuesday *ballets and all your dancing go wonderfully well, and remember that tutu will bring you all *those special feelings!* See you all next week, in that amazing time machine – it doesn’t matter what year you’re in as long as you *have a *lovely pink tutu!

Your favourite, Pink Tutu Wearing* blogger, Emma.

#TutuTuesday Ballet Tutu History on 2023-10-10