Leotards were often paired with tights for streamlining the body (and for aerialists, added grip)
Attribution:
Yasuo Kuniyoshi; American, 1889-1953; The Acrobat,1930; Lithograph; Collection of the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University; Gift of Mrs. Helen Kroll Kramer; 71.151; Licensed by the ARS; Image courtesy of the Johnson Museum; https://emuseum.cornell.edu/objects/8667/the-acrobat