History of the Ballet Tutu
The tutu has taken on many shapes, weights and fabrics over its history and is universally recognized as an icon in the world of ballet. The full circle silhouette is a technical wonder, and today's tutu has secret supports and hidden seams. The tutu's primary design is to expose a ballerina's technique while enhancing her flair.
Other People Are Reading
-
Classical Tutu
-
The tutu dates back to the French courts of the 16th century. Dance costumes were big, heavy and restricted movement. When Louis XIV founded the Academic Royale de Danse in 1661, ballet moved from court to stage and the costumes changed accordingly. Marie Camargo popularized the above-the-ankle skirt, considered scandalous at the time, to show off complicated footwork. When ladies began adding pirouettes to their dances, they added precautionary panties to the costumes to prevent exposure.
Tutu Italienne
-
Credited with major changes to the costume in the 19th century, the Italians' cutting edge dancing required the freedom of a softer, 16-layered, just below-the-knee skirt. This particular design, called tutu Italienne, appeared in Swan Lake and The Sleeping Beauty.
-
Romantic Tutu
-
Called the romantic tutu, the first tutu style appeared during the romantic period in ballet history. There are two types of romantic tutu: the first has a skirt beginning at the waist and the second has a dropped waist, with the skirt beginning at the hip, called a romantic tutu with basque. The first romantic tutu appeared on Marie Taglioni in the 1800s. She was also the first dancer to dance "en pointe," or on her tiptoes in ballet slippers.
Classic Design
-
The modern classical tutu comes in two main designs. One is the short stiff pancake design that juts out from the dancer's hips, exposing the legs completely. The second is the looser powder puff style that does not have a hoop, has a shorter skirt and softer look than the pancake style. The classical tutu styles responded to viewers' requests to see more of dancers' legs to appreciate the intricate choreography.
Bell Tutu
-
The bell tutu combines the romantic and classical tutus into an entirely new style. Its skirt is shorter and has more layers than the romantic tutu, but is longer and has fewer layers than the classical tutu. It has no hoop in the skirt, and it can be made of soft tulle like the romantic style or net like the classical tutu.
Structure
-
A pancake style tutu uses about 11 yards of fabric. A tutu's bodice has from six to 15 panels, pieced together and boned (rigid inserts). The bodice attaches to the skirt at either the waistline or the hip, depending on the style. The basque is the piece that sits from the waist to high on the hip: it either is part of the bodice, or a separate tight-fitting band. The skirt determines the shape of a tutu, and defines its style: romantic, classical or bell.
Modern Variations
-
Tutus are continuing to evolve. An innovative tutu, for the Australians Ballet's production "Divergence," was fashioned from air-conditioning filter mesh. It uses a bodice made from vacuum-formed polyurethane foam---like a diver's wetsuit. An automotive spray painter blackened the 16 yards of translucent mesh to achieve a dark enough color.
-
References
- Photo Credit ballerina image by chinatiger from Fotolia.com
