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It is well known that the world of sport has always had a particular fascination over that of fashion. There was the passion for tennis, with its culottes, the elegance of the white polo shirt, terry socks and Adidas Stan Smith sneakers, the equestrian world craze – with a clear division among fans of western riding and the more traditionalists who see in English all the sophistication of the case – with knee boots, Texans, broadband hats and cap reinvented by Gucci, and finally, a decisive slice of admirers for the universe of baseball, with cap, players’ t-shirts and oversized tracksuit trousers. Now it’s time to dance, very light pink tutus fluttering in the wind, between a demi-pliée and a grand-plié.
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The trend balletcore is nothing new, stylists have always taken their cue from this sport, raising the most prestigious dancers – and dancers – to inspiring muses. There was Martha Graham and Yves Saint Laurent, Iris van Herpen and Damien Jalet, Jean Paul Gualtier and Regina Chopinot. No wonder, dance has a charm of its own. It is elegance and class at the same time, it is lightness and determination, it is antique pink and light grey, it is luxury. To announce the great return of this trend were the ballerinas, which to the great surprise of most, began to appear at the feet of the most famous trend setters of the moment. Fashionistas turning into off-duty dancers, it’s a song you’ve heard before that never gets boring. From the days of John Galliano as creative director of Dior, with the Spring Summer 1996 collection, and the models transformed into dancers with minimal tutus and bursting corsets. No one can resist the charm of classical dance, even those who – apparently – may seem very far from the aesthetic and stylistic codes of this world. Like Comme des Garçons which for the Spring Summer 2005 collection presents a subversive reinterpretation of the sport, with vibrant colors and unexpected combinations. There are the great admirers of all time, such as Valentino, Rodarte, Miu Miu, who find great similarity with their own stylistic code between the romanticism of tulle and the ephebic tutus. There is no shortage of bolder reinterpretations of the theme, such as Moschino and its models in pastel skirts from the Fall Winter 2019 collection or Thom Brown and the Spring Summer 2020 men’s collection.
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The balletcore trend first appears on the catwalks, in the streets of the big cities -perhaps thanks to the return of the 2000s, the low waist and the spaghetti tops-, where between the dancers worn with leg warmers and sweaters with one shoulder up and the other down, remind the world of melancholy for the years of Flashdancesinging – and dancing – Maniac by Michael Sembello. Thus, in a stroke of genius à la Miuccia Prada, the Miu Miu Fall Winter 2022/2023 collection introduces ballerina flats on the catwalk, reclaiming their supremacy, and giving way to the officialization of the trend. MM6 Maison Margiela follows with her reinterpretation of the “off-duty ballerina” style for the Spring Summer 2023 ready-to-wear collection, Sandy Liang enchants New York with her minimalist ballerinas for Spring Summer 2023, unlike those designed by Simone Rocha that between fluffy tulle, ribbons and pearls, they are anything but minimal.
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Everything you need to follow this new fashion is probably already found in most people’s wardrobes, you just need to have the right intuition to match the different items together. Ballerinas and socks in wool, antique pink and wrap, black body and gray melange over sweatshirt. Alex Owens would be proud.
