Teas and Tutus

Teas and Tutus

An event for London Ballet Circle members
at the Royal Ballet School

January 19th, 2025

The tutu is synonymous with classical ballet, and at this afternoon’s event London Ballet Circle members were shown just how this iconic garment was created. Jane Pritchard, Curator of Dance at the V & A museum and well-known dance historian and archivist, related the history of the garment. Two very experienced tutu makers, Meri Makipentti and Stephanie Woodage, then both talked about and demonstrated their craft. All three were warmly welcomed by the chair of LBC, Susan Dalgetty-Ezra, who explained that this in-person event, the first of the new year, would be followed by tea and refreshments.

Jane commenced by saying that while the dancer was usually the focus of our attention, the tutu – and the pointe shoe – were central to the image of the ballerina in classical ballet and had been so from its early days. Wearing the right clothes is always so important. La Camargo (Marie-Anne de Cupis de Camargo), an 18th century French dancer with Paris Opera Ballet, was allegedly the first ballerina to shorten her skirt in order that the audience might be able to observe the movements of her feet more clearly.

The concept of the white tutu for the ballerina taking part in a romantic ballet had been fostered by Eugène Lami, Head of Wardrobe for the Paris company in the 19th century. At the start of this period, the height of empire for several countries including France, classic female dress was high waisted and straight. The big change came in the 20s and 30s when the ‘waist’ line slipped down to the true waist. The ballet costume then assumed the form of a bell skirt, which steadily became shorter (probably up to thigh level) as dance technique developed.

Evolution of dance, from the rather more sedate ‘skimming’ across the stage to the introduction of more strenuous and athletic steps, such as balances and turns, could be hindered by the presence of layers of fabric around the dancer’s legs. It also became much more desirable that legs and feet should be visible so that the ever more complex techniques being employed could be better appreciated by the audience. Incidentally, it was also at this time that women’s shoes were evolving into slipper-like forms from which the ballet shoe itself would develop.

In passing, Jane noted that the costumes for some current ballets, for instance Onegin, demonstrate this transition. The young women who first appear in this work wear high waisted dress; by the end of the ballet waists are in their proper place.

In the later years of the century, Virginia Zucchi, an Italian dancer and very much a star of her time, attracted comment in Italy and Paris by wearing minimal costume such as skirts that were considerably shorter than was the custom. When she went to Russia to dance with the Imperial Ballet she was confronted in St Petersburg with a knee-length dress for her role in The Pharaoh’s Daughter. She is alleged to have said that she ‘was not going to dance in a costume her grandmother could have worn’, and apparently immediately took the scissors to it!

In 1895 the British designer, Wilhelm, commented that the tutu of the day had become ‘an abbreviated perversion of a debutantes’ ball dress, shortened to two thirds of its length and with décolleté to an exaggeration’. Nevertheless, it quickly became the norm that no prima ballerina would dance in anything other than a tutu; there was even an instance in which the need for such a garment had to be decided in court!

The tutu as it is known today can probably be traced back to the costumes worn by Anna Pavlova and made by Madame Manya, a designer who, having trained in a St Petersburg fashion house, made all of Pavlova’s costumes. In 1912 she was invited to work for Pavlova at the Palace Theatre and moved to London remaining with her until Pavlova’s death in 1931. Manya went on to design for Alicia Markova, who wore these costumes when dancing with the Vic-Wells Ballet company. These tutus became the template for the garment in general use today and, according to Jane, Madame Manya is thus the ‘unsung hero’ of tutu design.

The other woman whose name should be remembered is Barbara Karinska. Born in Ukraine, she spent most of her life in the States, where she became a well-known costume designer for cinema and theatre, collaborating extensively with George Balanchine in designing costumes for his ballets. Her tutus are rather different from the British ‘model’, using many more panels in the bodice, with cloth usually cut on the bias. These two women, Karinska and Manya, have together been pivotal in shaping the image of the ballerina as seen today.

These days British-made tutus are much admired and often sought throughout the world. However, it has never been a universal ballet ‘uniform’. While it might be usual in ballets such as Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty there are other works, for instance, by Ashton in which the tutu does not make an appearance. And it may be noted that few of the works created for the Ballets Russes required the wearing of a tutu. Today, of course, a much wider range of costume styles is used in many ballets.

Jane went on to opine that the design and construction of a tutu is an extremely specialist art, a ‘cottage industry’ perhaps, and often a secret known only to its exponents. Both Stephanie and Meri confirmed they had much to learn when each decided – individually – to make such a garment.

Stephanie had made her first tutu for her own daughter when she was aged seven, considering that as she was very used to sewing it should not present a great problem. However, she could find no patterns or instructions and thus had to teach herself what was required through reading and research. She had been proud of the finished garment and was even more pleased when, after the show in which her daughter had worn it, she was asked if she could make other similar tutus.

Meri’s story was similar, also having started to make costumes for the local ballet school attended by her daughter. Trained as an architect and designer, she felt that designing and making ballet costumes was a natural extension of her professional life. Both she and Stephanie make costumes for youngsters in local ballet schools, and also for more experienced dancers taking part in festivals, galas, and competitions such as the YAGP.

The two costume makers then went on to describe the various aspects of the making of a tutu, discussing the many different factors which had to be considered, and demonstrating all these with reference to the garments they had brought with them.

Requirements for the garment

Will it be worn by a youngster or a more mature dancer? Would it be relatively lightweight or was a more substantial garment required? For a specific role? For a local festival, or an international competition? There are, for instance, specific rules governing costume design for dancers taking part in competitions, all of which must be taken into account.

What may be the wishes of the intended wearer – in fact, might the garment have to be capable of adjustment to enable it to be worn by more than one dancer?

The basic construction of a tutu

The making of a tutu involves the use of a range of different materials in order to achieve the iconic form. In broad terms the garment will include coutil as material for the basque and as flatlining for the bodice, with cotton bobbinet or some other lightweight material for the knickers, together with nylon net. The base material for the skirt is a stiff net (‘tutu net’), which may have to be imported from Italy, with a different net (‘powernet’) often used for the knickers.

The materials to be used will include what is available and affordable as well as what might be desirable. Meri and Stephanie discussed the relative merits of stretch and non-stretch fabrics, of natural materials (which they both preferred) and the likes of nylon, polyester and Lycra. Strategic use of stretch materials may be necessary where, for instance, it was hoped that the garment might be worn for some years while a young dancer grew.

Decoration

The manner and extent of decoration of the finished garment will, of course, have a profound effect on the final appearance of the garment. Balancing the wishes of the wearer with the needs of the production in which it will be worn is not always easy!

Both tutu makers stressed the amount of hand stitching usually required to produce a first-rate garment that looked good and which would, accordingly, enhance the dancer’s performance on stage. Making a tutu could be a long job!

In concluding the more formal part of the afternoon, Susan, chair of the London Ballet Circle, thanked all three, Meri, Stephanie, and Jane, most sincerely for their participation. The tutu had always been symbolic of the female ballet dancer, and learning of its history, together with insights into the way the garment is put together, had been absolutely fascinating.

Trevor Rothwell. 30-01-25