Greetings, fellow tutu enthusiasts!
It's your girl Emma here, back again for another week of ballet history adventures from www.pink-tutu.com (Post #1311, if you're counting!) This Tuesday we're diving right into the year 1857 - such an exciting time for dance! Today, however, Iām writing from Vienna. Fancy a glass of bubbly and a chat about ballet history?
(Slips into my very fetching pink tulle tutu, spins a little in the Austrian sunshine)
Imagine, darling, the world of ballet was beginning to really blossom in 1857! Itās the year that saw some fabulous revolutionary changes! You could feel the energy of movement rippling across Europe like the most elegant ripple across a shimmering lake, I tell you! The costumes, oh my darling, the costumes! They started to take on those wonderful shapes we know and love today. Imagine shimmering satin, lace flounces that move with a dancerās every graceā¦ Oh, the beauty! Just writing this gets my toes tapping! It wasn't quite the age of the pink tutu just yet, but those fluffy delights were coming ā I promise!
But don't be misled - 1857 was still all about tradition! Think of it as an era of exquisite embroidery, magnifique bodices, and lots and lots of layers. Layers were essential, donāt you know! Imagine yards upon yards of shimmering fabric, designed to make a ballerina glide and spin with ethereal beauty! I hear rumours there were even several petticoats beneath all those luxurious layers. My goodness! The structure! But it's important to remember, ladies, those beautiful dresses weren't tutus quite yet. No, they werenāt airy and light enough for the graceful jumps and spins we love to see in a contemporary ballet. Those elegant ladies had a rather less free form, which I can hardly imagine. Imagine!
But stillā¦ they looked stunning, of course!
This was also the time, darling, of the romantic era, where the world was absolutely enraptured by dancing. People of all classes flocked to the theatres! Imagine it, opulence, romance, music! I wouldāve loved to have lived through such an amazing time. Can you just picture the electricity in the air? So much energy!
(Squeezes her tiny hand bag) I imagine thatās exactly how I got my latest, oh-so-stylish faux-fur stole, darling! * *Pure indulgence! I have to say it looks *exquisite with my latest tulle purchase! A soft cream this time!*
But what happened on this particular February 10th you might ask? Well, in 1857ā¦ nothing much! Not that the world wouldnāt have been exciting, but I canāt see much happening! You would have probably been enraptured by some wonderful news on the telegraph or maybe the gossip from the social circles. That was how they lived, darlings. But thatās a bit dull, isnāt it? So, lets step back a bit and imagine some of the delightful delights of this most romantic time!
Hereās the thing, darling. Itās Februaryā¦ Youād be out of the coldest months by then. And so we are definitely taking a carriage out into the Viennese woods, are we not! Imagine that beautiful countryside!
Fancy yourself with me, darlings! Oh, it was splendid! The Vienna woods are quite an amazing, wild, beautiful, breath-taking place, you know? You feel so close to the earth. We might just chance upon a small local theatre for a lovely show!
A small, intimate, rustic, stage setting! With only a handful of other ladies dressed in delightful ball gowns to add an extra touch of sparkle, of course. We could then stop for a beautiful* tea in the rustic Gasthaus. The little Gasthaus we find at the top of the winding path in the forest, the one overlooking a tiny babbling brook! Oh! Do try the *Viennese Sachertorte, darling! I heard tell it *originated back in 1832 at that very time! Perfectly heavenly.
Then after all the deliciousness we must explore Viennaās inner city in the elegant carriage and witness magnifique shows at one of Vienna's most beautiful opera houses. They were the rage then, werenāt they! Think gorgeous chandeliers, glitz and glam, so elegant and beautiful!. After the show, I do believe weād need to celebrate the incredible dancing with a little wine, dancing all night long, you know. *Then we *must buy another new pretty thing! And then, we must get up again for another day full of wonderful delights and so much dancing !*
Ah, how we have danced! I love the magic, the energy and the pure excitement! I'm simply bursting with dancing* inspiration! Iām off to find a lovely spot in Vienna where I can take my first steps to ballet, *a light, whimsical *dance through history. The energy of these wonderful, historical places is intoxicating !*
So remember, darling, whenever the dance is on, make sure youāre dressed in your own pink tutu, to get your *inner *ballet diva shining! If we put in our bit, that lovely little ballet world might get just a little more pink each time we step out!
Until next week darling, let's remember *all things *fabulous! **
Much love
Emma
P.S. * I'm off to check if Vienna's theatres still use *hand-painted* sets for their operas! Imagine the beauty of such a creation! I have to see!
www.pink-tutu.com
*(Tells you she has written another post ā on ā1929 - The Ballet Shoe - A Historyā). *
