Although we were all tired from a long week of tech rehearsals, company class helped everyone to focus upon what would shortly follow, as the excitement built up. After class, the dressing room was a flurry of activity; we had two hours to sort our hair, makeup, and costume, which for me involved battling hair curlers for half an hour in a fairly futile attempt to produce the tight, springy ringlets of a party child. Anyone who knows me will know that I'm not usually one for makeup- on a rare occasion I will wear lipstick or nail polish, but that's about it- so contour, highlighter and a palette with twelve different shades of eyeshadow all seemed a baffling mystery to me!!! Luckily with the help from a kind second-year I managed to get the makeup sorted (the contour still needs work though- I didn't have any bronzer (is that the right word?!?!) so resorted to using dark eyeshadow as contour..... Initially I looked as if I had been down a coal mine, with dark, patchy eyeshadow smeared absentmindedly across my cheekbones!!!!), and it was time for costume. I had a long white dress, with a pretty dark blue hem and bow, with a matching blue bow in my hair.
No sooner was I in costume, then Rhys, the tech manager, swept through the dressing room, calling "Act One beginners to the stage! Act One beginners please!" Those words sent a shiver of delight down my spine- the kind of joy that a five year old must feel on Christmas morning, at the whisper of "Santa's been!!!"
We quickly assembled backstage, and the overture began.
I had begun to feel somewhat nervous, but I imagined what Miss Kaye would've said if she had been there; I imagined her, standing behind me; I imagined the comforting warmth of her hug, and reminded myself that whatever I do, she is proud of me and wants me to succeed.
Stepping onstage, after three and a half years since my last proper performance, felt like being transported, in a whirlwind of fantasies and dreams; I was safe there, I could express myself- and most importantly, I could inspire.
As I danced, a myriad of names swirled through my mind; the names of people who I wished could be there to see me dance, the people who have always supported me, and those who, in spirit, have never left my side. I knew the choreography well enough so that I didn't have to think about the steps; I simply focused on the joy of dance, knowing that perhaps somewhere in the audience, there would be a young child who would decide that night, that her dream was to dance the role of a party child in The Nutcracker.
All too soon, the party scene ended, and we were back in the dressing room- it felt somewhat like waking up from a dream, yet with the knowledge that the next day, we would be transported back to the magical world where, with music, lights and costume, anything is possible!!
I've posted a few photos on my Facebook page; https://m.facebook.com/Sophies-Dancing-Dream-493742164035647/?ref=bookmarks more photos to follow shortly
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