The history of the ballet dates as far back as the renaissance era of Italy. However, the ballet we know today, developed during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries in France. Ballet dancers performed for the amusement of the royal court with accompanying music, and elaborate set designs and costumes. For many years, only men danced in the ballets. They played the roles of both male and female characters in the stories told. To play the female roles, they wore heavy masks and wigs. 1681 was the year that the first woman danced in a professional ballet in France.

The popularity of the ballet only increased in the seventeen hundreds as the dance became more and more about telling stories. Opera combined with ballet to convey exciting and romantic tales. Another development in the eighteenth century was the change in costumes. Up to this point, women wore very full hoop skirts and heeled shoes. Men wore knee-length hoop skirts. In the later seventeen hundreds, two of the most famous ballerinas, Marie Camargo and Marie Sall, broke with the traditional costume. They wore shorter skirts or flowing Grecian gowns and heelless slippers.

The eighteen hundreds saw the development of the romantic ballet. The romantic style included stories about otherworldly beings. To emphasize the supernatural, dancers used more toe dancing. This required reinforcement in the toe of the dance slippers and led eventually to toe shoes proper. The romantic era in ballet also brought about the ballerina tutu, a short, full skirt made of several layers of stiff fabric. It was meant to distinguish the supernatural characters from the human characters in the story. Tights were invented at this time so that female dancers could maintain their modesty. The tutu meant that ballerinas could dance with all the freedom necessary and show off their spectacular movements.

Today, there are four basic tutu styles. The earliest tutu developed was the romantic tutu. This skirt came into prominence in the romantic era when ballerinas danced to stories from Greek mythology and Roman history. The romantic tutu is a three-quarters length skirt made of tulle and with a bell shape. It falls between the knees and ankles and usually includes a bodice, sometimes with sleeves. The romantic tutu, unlike other tutus is light and airy, not stiff, to emphasize etherealness of supernatural characters.

The classical pancake tutu, on the other hand, is a short, very stiff skirt that sticks out almost straight from the waist. It uses a hoop and several layers of netting to maintain the shape. The pancake tutu is usually attached to a fitted bodice, which may or may not have sleeves.

The classical bell tutu also attaches to a fitted bodice, but is longer and less stiff than the pancake tutu. As a result, it has a slight bell shape.

The Balanchine/Karinska tutu, or powder puff tutu, closely resembles the classical bell, but is even more loose and flowing and is not always attached to a bodice.

The ballet and its costumes have been changing and developing for centuries into the classic style we see today.