New Moves by Margaret Gurevich

Author:Margaret Gurevich
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Stone Arch Books; Academy of Dance; fiction; performing arts/dance; social themes/friendship; girls & women; 9781496578235; 9781496580214; 9781496578259
Publisher: Capstone
Published: 2018-10-02T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 6

Just Dance

My friends and I don’t text for the rest of the weekend. It’s just as well. I don’t know what to say to any of them. I feel especially awful for putting Sophie in the middle.

On Monday afternoon, I walk into my contemp class, nervous about seeing Sophie. I haven’t talked to her since the disastrous mall outing.

As I’m warming up at the barre there’s a tap on my shoulder. I turn and see Sophie standing there.

“Hey,” she says. “How are you?”

I’m relieved she doesn’t look mad. I shrug. “OK … I guess.”

“That was some weekend, huh?” she says.

I cringe. “I don’t know what happened.”

Sophie bites the inside of her cheek. “I think I do. Let’s talk after class.”

Just then Mr. Viktor walks in. “Places!” he calls.

Sophie bumps my hip and grins. “Be the wind,” she whispers.

I grin back. It can’t be too bad if Sophie is still cracking jokes.

“We have four more classes before our sampling,” Mr. Viktor reminds us. “I hope you’ve all been practicing. Let’s review our steps from last week, then add on. Remember—be free!”

I glance at Sophie, and she mouths free. I hold in a laugh and try to take the advice to heart.

Free your mind, I tell myself. Be Jell-O.

I move my arms in front of me like I’m holding a huge beach ball and loosen my shoulders as I mix the soup. My leg rises to the side for the tilt, then whips back and forward for the fouetté.

“The song we’ll be using for our sampling is called ‘All Together,’” Mr. Viktor explains. “To emphasize the togetherness, I want you to connect to each other on the needle.”

I’m not sure what he means by connecting, but I like the idea of expressing emotions in the song.

“For the needle, line up with a partner, and lace your fingers together as you lift your opposite legs in the air,” he instructs.

Sophie and I partner up to practice the move. Our hands fall to the floor, and we lace our fingers together before lifting our legs into the twelve o’clock position. Lacing our fingers actually helps me balance too.

“Bravo!” says Mr. Viktor. “Now with music.”

I close my eyes and focus on the beat as I lift my leg for the tilt. I don’t pause as I complete the fouetté turn. Then Sophie and I run to each other and lace our fingers together for the needle.

Seeing all the dancers’ fingers connected as we raise our legs helps the song come alive, and I understand what Mr. Viktor meant about the moves coming together.

“Beautiful!” shouts Mr. Viktor. “Next we’re going to add a layout. This is a dramatic move. As the music gets louder, that’s your cue to do the layout. Watch me.”

Mr. Viktor replays the song. As the music swells, he brings his left foot forward. His right foot brushes across the floor and off the ground as he arches his back and throws his arms behind him.

When it’s our turn to try, I listen for the musical cue.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.