Why is pink the prevalent color in ballet?

Many ballet stories take on the traditional fairy tale (Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, etc), where the princess and prince falls in love (ladeeda happy ever after). Pink (in addition to white, sparkles, glitter, etc) fits in with that ethereal, dream-like quality surrounding princesses. read more

In order for ballet to be more diverse, it has to grapple with the fact that flesh tones are not necessarily shades of pink. (Read the other answers for more on this and go to this link: Tights Connection to the Beginning of Ballet) One could argue the issues of visibility of leg line, etc. but theatrical lighting has evolved enough to handle this. read more

Second, the use of tights evens the tone of all dancers (especially corps de ballet), which doesn’t happen with no tights as people have different skin tones. Also, pink when lit by bright light looks like skin color and goes well with white tutu (Ex: Swan lake). So, it has become a tradition to use pink tights by ballerinas in ballet. read more

Nowadays, many ballet dancers still wear pink tights and shoes because it is a tradition that honors the original pointe dancers. Some schools, Like Dance Theater of Harlem, require students to wear tights and shoes that match their own skin tones (in this case, most dancers must use makeup to"pancake" their shoes to match their skin). read more