Chapter 20

It’s the big night: Saturday night, the premiere of Springtime in Harlem. I’m so excited I can hardly hold still. After thinking I’d never dance at the Harlem Ballet, getting this second chance is the best thing ever.

I have to be at the theater at seven o’clock, so I can get into my costume and get my makeup done. Makeup! This really is the big time.

Dad drops me off in front of the theater. “Break a leg!” he says, kissing the top of my head. “I know you’ll make us all proud.”

My friends are just going in the front door. I run to catch up. We make our way to the dressing rooms and open the one marked girls. Our eyes widen as we look around. There’s a big, long mirror along the wall with a long makeup table under it. A row of light-bulbs surrounds the mirror.

Ruby, the makeup lady, is waiting to help us get ready. She covers our faces, one by one, with a layer of base, then lines our eyes and paints our lips.

JoAnn looks into the mirror, horrified, after her makeup’s done. “We’re supposed to be girls! Not clowns!”

Ruby laughs. “The stage lights are bright, dear. You’ll look totally normal onstage, believe it or not.”

“Not,” JoAnn mutters. But Jerzey Mae is thrilled about her makeup. She keeps sneaking glances at herself in the mirror.

Next, a woman named Anna comes to help us into our costumes. “Be very careful,” she cautions us. “You don’t want to get that makeup on these lovely dresses.”

“Curtain in fifteen minutes.” The stage manager’s voice booms through a speaker hanging in a corner. There’s so much excitement in the room I wouldn’t be surprised if we all started floating or bouncing off the walls.

There’s a knock on the door. Linc pops his head in. “Good luck, girls,” he says. “You, too,” we call out in unison. Just before he leaves, he catches my eye and winks.

Almost before we know it, music starts playing. There’s a little TV in the dressing room that shows what’s happening onstage.

We see the curtains part and Linc spring onto the stage for the first scene.

“Girls to stage left. You’re on in five minutes,” we hear through the speaker.

Anna leads us down a hallway and quietly opens a door. We pass through heavy black curtains, and all of a sudden, there we are, standing in the wings. We have a side view of Linc doing his solo dance. He finishes, and the stage goes dark.

“You’re on!” Anna says.

We walk onto the stage and take our positions for the beginning of the scene. I peek into the audience. It’s a little hard to see, but it looks like the theater’s full. Then the music begins, light floods the stage, and we’re dancing.

We move as a unit, all seven of us together. Linc dances on from stage left. He takes Terrel’s hand, and they dance together as the rest of us continue with our steps. The music fills my heart, my soul, my body, and I dance the best I’ve ever danced, even though I’m doing exactly the steps I’m supposed to do. It’s a good thing that smiling is part of the choreography. I think the smiles we have plastered all over our faces are going to last a very long time.

Before we know it, we’re back offstage.

We watch the rest of the ballet on the little TV in our dressing room. There’s one scene where Linc is supposed to be angry. He flails around and dances like a crazy man. But he always lands right where the spotlight shines on him.

“Everyone, prepare for curtain call,” the stage manager says through the speaker, right before the show ends. We wait in the wings until the music stops, and everyone starts clap-ping. My friends and I run onstage holding hands, and we curtsy. Terrel steps in front and takes a solo bow. A teensy part of me is jealous—but I will have plenty of time later to be a big star.

The applause is deafening. All the other dancers come onstage. Linc takes a solo bow, and then we all bow together. Someone hands Linc a huge bouquet of roses. After he bows again, he comes over to us. He pulls out seven roses and hands one to each of us. The audience cheers and claps even louder.

Finally, the curtain falls.