Ballerina skirt
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A ballerina skirt, also referred to as a Juliet skirt or a romance skirt, is a full skirt that is worn by
ballet dancer A ballet dancer is a person who practices the Art (skill), art of classical ballet. Both females and males can practice ballet. They rely on years of extensive training and proper technique to become a part of a professional ballet company. B ...
s and is composed of multiple layers of fabric. Ballet dancers wear the longer version of the skirt, while for fashion purposes the skirt is worn shorter, like a mini skirt for better dancing, the cocktail version. The standard ballerina attire is composed of fabric with a wire, in order for tulle to be visualized as stiff when it is around their waists. The Juliet styled skirt is free-flowing and covers the majority of their legs to place a high emphasis on the performer's legs. The ballerina skirt is typically made up of five to twelve layers of tulle fabric. A ballerina skirt is portrayed as feminine and elegant, as well as being associated with the traditional attire for classical ballet performances. There are several different types of the ballerina skirts are used when performing. Those include: romantic, classic, pancake, balanchine and platter skirts.


History

From early 1550s, Roman dress had a strong influence on costume design: silk skirts were voluminous, and key details were often exaggerated, which was usually based on everyday wear. During the seventeenth century, silks, satins, and other fabrics were embroidered with real gold and precious stones. While this increased the level of decoration with ballet costumes, the heavy garments and supporting structures did not allow the dancers to perform graceful gestures and ultimately weighed them down. During the early 1700s the ''panier'', a hooped petticoat, was just invented that help raised the skirts a few inches off the ground. When the Romantic movement came about, ballet costumes were emphasized more to be tight-fitting. The romantic tutu came about in Paris in 1832 when Marie Taglioni premiered in the skirt in the ballet performance ''La Sylphide''. The skirt is a bell-shaped calf-length style; it falls halfway between the knees and ankles and it was composed of layers of stiffened tarlatan or starched, sheer cotton muslin that gave the illusion of fullness without being heavy. By 1870 other ballerinas began wearing tutus cut above the knee allowing to show complex footwork and to give visual of the ruffled underpants attached to the skirt. Ballet skirts began to get shorter during the 20th century. Some ballet skirts had tarlatan layers which help create a flared-from-the-body effect. In the 1940s wire, hoops were inserted to enable the skirt to stand out from the hips. Tulle soon replaced tarlatan making the hoop an option rather than being a necessity. The most common style today is the short skirt which appeared in the late nineteenth century and it is made of different fabrics and materials which range from fluffy to thin fabrics. This skirt gained popularity in the fashion world in the 1950s. Women began to dress extremely feminine and focused on the decor and accessories that they could add to their attire, as well as the appearance of a narrow waistline. Throughout this time period, women were seen wearing these tight bodices and flowy skirts to emphasize the narrow waist look Celebrities and actresses played a huge role in the popularity of the ballerina skirt.
Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe ( ; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; June 1, 1926 August 4, 1962) was an American actress and model. Known for playing comic "Blonde stereotype#Blonde bombshell, blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex ...
was seen wearing ballerina skirts in her “Ballerina” series of photographs, this is what brought the skirts from performance attire to everyday wear during the 1950s. In the show ''Sex in the City'' actress Sarah Jessica Parker is seen in the opening credits wearing a tutu and ends up showing the symbolism of the character, yet it also inspired the world to try out the look. Fashion designers, such as Lacroix and Valentino have more recently been looking toward ballet for inspiration. As well as
Serena Williams Serena Jameka Williams (born September 26, 1981) is an American former professional tennis player. She was ranked as the List of WTA number 1 ranked singles tennis players, world No. 1 in women's singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WT ...
being a world representative during her tennis matches for the ballet skirt.


Production process

Ballerina skirts have been seen as a direct symbol of ballet performers, but they are widely known as an art form. One of the most known costume designers, Barbara Karinska was known for her tutu-producing skills; she even named herself the "tutu-mechanic". The production begins with the steps of creating a panty on the inside layer and then building from that. The next part that is developed is the basque portion, known as the waist portion. This is composed of heavy fabrics that are cut and designed to fit dancers, who are being
tailor A tailor is a person who makes or alters clothing, particularly in men's clothing. The Oxford English Dictionary dates the term to the thirteenth century. History Although clothing construction goes back to prehistory, there is evidence of ...
ed to fit exactly into that specific skirt. The panels are then stitched together; this section determines the fullness of the skirt and helps with the durably of the skirt. All skirts can be cut differently depending on the style of the performance and the look that is being desired. The last step is to attach the bodice to the skirt.


Types of ballerina skirt

Ballerinas can often be seen in several types of ballerina skirts. The Romantic tutu was first made famous through Marie Taglioni; since she was wearing such a flowing skirt, her
pointe shoe A pointe shoe (, ), also referred to as a ''ballet shoe'', is a type of shoe worn by ballet dancers when performing pointe technique, pointe work. Pointe shoes were conceived in response to the desire for dancers to appear weightless and sylph-li ...
s were easily recognized. The Romantic tutu is a large bell-shaped skirt composed of soft material. It covers the majority of the dancer's legs, down to the ankle. The Classical tutu has several variations, but the main reason it was created was so that the dancers could be freer and it would not be so constrictive of their dancing. Bell-styled tutus are known for their bell-like shape; they are made to be short and stiff with several layers of netting to help with framing the flow-like appearance of the skirt.


See also

* Tutu


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballerina Skirt Dancewear Skirts