On Pointe by Sheryl Berk

Author:Sheryl Berk
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 2014-12-26T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 9

Get to the Pointe

With only two more weeks to practice before opening night, Mr. Minnelli was feeling the pressure to get everything in his ballet perfect. He mopped his brow with a white handkerchief and exclaimed things like, “Quelle horreur!” whenever the dancers forgot a step, bent their knees, or fell a beat behind the music.

All rehearsals now took place at the Paramus Playhouse on the massive stage. There was so much to remember, and so many little details to check: the lights, the sets, the Ferris wheel, not to mention that all of the dances had to go off without a hitch.

The “Russian Dance” from the Land of Sweets was one of the hardest to execute. It involved crazy acrobat leaps, flips, and stunts.

Marcus clapped his hands together. “Where are my Russians?” Three boys—Will, Ben, and Presley—appeared onstage.

“This is one of the most memorable dances of the entire production,” he said to them. “Let’s hope it’s for a good reason …”

The music pounded from the loudspeakers and the dancers rushed out onto the stage, leaping and flipping through the air.

“More energy!” Marcus shouted. “Those split jumps should be high enough to touch the sky!”

But the more Marcus barked, the more confused they got. Ben accidentally tumbled into Presley, who tripped Will just as he was about to do his cartwheel. They all landed in a heap on the stage.

“Tragic, tragic, tragic,” Mr. Minnelli moaned. “Can’t anyone here do a decent flip without falling flat on his face?”

“Gracie can!” Liberty said, peeking out from the wings. She gave her a little push. “She could do that dance in her sleep. She’s an amazing gymnast.”

Gracie gulped. All eyes were staring at her. “I am?”

“Totally!” Liberty gave her another shove. “She can show you how it should be done.”

“You don’t say?” Mr. Minnelli replied, raising an eyebrow. “Would you care to show us, Gracie?”

Gracie walked to stage right and waited for the music to start. She executed a perfect aerial cartwheel and then squatted on the floor with her arms crossed over her chest. She kicked her legs out to either side without a single wobble.

“Spasibo!” Mr. Minnelli cheered. “That’s Russian for ‘thank you.’ That, gentlemen, is what I want to see!”

Gracie beamed as the cast applauded.

“Great job,” Liberty whispered. “You are the best dancer here.”

“Really?” Gracie said. “You think I’m better than even you?”

Liberty gritted her teeth. “Well, I wouldn’t go that far …” Then she smiled sweetly. “But you’re the star, Gracie. And as the star, you should get everything you want.”

“What do you mean?” Gracie asked.

Liberty noticed the crew working on the Land of Sweets backdrop. They were hard at work creating a mosaic out of multicolored candies that spelled out “Welcome to the Shore.”

“You see those candies over there?” She pointed to a mountain of gummy bears, lollipops, and jellybeans scattered on a table backstage.

“Yeah! Yum!” Gracie said, licking her lips. “There must be a gazillion of them.”

“Right, so you certainly help yourself to as many as you want,” Liberty said, egging her on.

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