#TutuTuesday Ballet Tutu History on 2029-05-15

Hello my darlings, and welcome back to Pink Tutu, your weekly dose of all things tutu-licious! Today, I’m thrilled to be whisking you away to the most romantic time in tutu history, because today is a very special day: 15th May, 2029.

Why special, you ask? Well, this is the very day in history we can thank for the romantic ballet, that dreamy and emotional style that has captivated audiences for centuries!

You see, my darlings, we need to travel back to the 19th century to discover this revolutionary movement. And let me tell you, tutus, my dears, were about to get much more fabulous. It’s all thanks to a French ballerina who had a vision. We'll come to her soon, but first, let's go back in time with a whiff of old perfume and a gentle clinking of the train tracks... Because that's how I arrived, of course!

You might be surprised to hear this, my lovelies, but the ballerina's shoes were actually what made tutus go revolutionary.

Before this time, ballerina shoes had stiff, chunky leather soles that didn't allow for graceful movement, and they were actually banned from some famous Parisian theatres, much to my shock! They didn’t let ballerinas really dance en pointe, you know?

But then, one extremely influential Monsieur decided it was time for a change. Mr. Charles-Louis Didelot, he of the famous Parisian theatre, wanted something different from the heavier, stricter dancing.

You see, Monsieur Didelot, this revolutionary soul, brought about the rise of pointe shoes in ballet – they were lightweight and had a softer, flexible construction, made of canvas with a stiffened toe! And as we know, the shoe, or more specifically the ability to go en pointe, changed everything.

The ability to rise up, gracefully, onto those new pointe shoes, was truly transformative, and that, my darlings, changed the way ballet looked and how ballet was danced. So, in a way, you can thank a Monsieur, a revolutionary ballet shoe and a bit of cleverness for what came next, a beautiful ballet revolution that we all enjoy to this day!

I think we've all got that one diva friend we all absolutely adore! In the 1800s, it was Marie Taglioni. And what a revolutionary woman she was, this darling.

Marie was known as The White Angel (don't you love a good name like that?!), because she made such a striking impact on the world of ballet that audiences were just utterly enthralled by her presence. She moved with grace and ethereal beauty. And her movement demands a dress fit for an angel, right?

This gorgeous lady wanted a new type of dance garment for her moves – something more delicate and ethereal to give her more movement and a truly romantic feeling on the stage.

So, a new tutu was born! You see, tutus at this time weren't as glamorous as we know them today. The "tutu" was actually a short, rather severe type of skirt made from a fabric called tarlatan. It was much simpler, quite plain actually, but made for an amazing effect on the stage – she swirled like the lightest feather!

With this shorter and more simple style, she took centre stage to revolutionise the world of dance. We now had a lighter and more graceful* style of dancing – that would allow dancers to move more freely. The dance became lighter and it **exalted this new elegance!

Think, ladies! Light as a feather, romantic, dreamy. I absolutely love that. The tutus at this time began to move towards this delicate romantical vision: longer, lighter and more floating in appearance and shape.

I can’t imagine performing without one now, and when I see it on stage – well, it truly is breathtaking. The elegance, the delicacy, and the story it all brings to life - absolutely brilliant! And as someone from Derbyshire, England, where there’s more of a ‘straight and plain’ aesthetic than an elegant, flowy, style, this is certainly a huge influence on my love for all things delicate!

But back to the year 2029! What am I up to?

Firstly, celebrating this amazing anniversary, which is absolutely why I wanted to make today’s blog so special for all you fashion and history lovers. The Romantic Revolution changed ballet in every possible way.

But you see, here at Pink Tutu my darlings, we never just look at the past! The beauty is the fact that we love taking what was considered groundbreaking in ballet fashion and incorporating it into our daily lives! Let’s own those pretty tutus! It is about creating your own beautiful tutu journey - so I do love finding these amazing vintage ballet-inspired outfits that help us re-create that look in everyday life.

And you know my style: the more pink, the better, of course! It’s why we love a ballet inspiration, it's got so much sparkle and is all about femininity, and I have absolutely no issue at all wearing *pink to every ballet performance! I am planning to be heading off to see the famous *Swan Lake later this afternoon, of course. The whole dreamy setting with the beautiful ballerinas dancing on stage – that is truly an inspiration, isn't it?

I would love to hear your own fashion inspiration and what *makes your heart sing when you see tutus on stage – don't forget to leave a comment below!

I absolutely adore it when you ladies send me your lovely pink outfit creations, as you know! I love to feature your style in the Pink Tutu gallery every week to inspire other lovely readers around the world.

I will absolutely add more information* to this blog next week too, on *The History of Ballet Shoes, because we simply *can’t talk about the ballerina tutu without delving into its footwear too! It’s the one of the most essential pieces of equipment, after all, for any ballerinas!

And you know, my darlings, a ballerina has so much equipment! Don’t forget the leotard, the tights and a selection of other amazing garments that add character to every performance – we can go through them together, because each one is truly important. And of course, every ballerina needs the right bag to carry all their equipment. You'll be seeing an all new Pink Tutu collection soon where we have a limited edition range of ballet inspired bags and accessories, designed for ballet classes and everyday adventures! So, look out for that!

I will keep Pink Tutu a fun, family friendly and fashion-forward platform that encourages creativity and allows us to explore the beauty of ballet through the love for tutus!

Do keep sending in your outfits, darlings, it’s so exciting to see the way that you each make ballet fashion part of your own personal style. Until next time,

Emma.