Imagine you're three and you've not only spent the last year idolizing your big sister after seeing her perform on stage, but also the last 12 weeks practicing for your own debut. Now put yourself in her ballet shoes and try to stay seated while adjusting your too-big costume and not get folded up by the auditorium seats on your big day.
Needless to say, it was indeed a big day for Lilly. Clara was performing, too, but for her it was old hat. She was really all about perfecting her art. Yeah, Henry was there, too, but he seemed more interested in chewing on his hand trying to soothe his gums than anything else.
Watching Lilly was a blast. Her clas was the youngest of the ballet classes and included all the requisite recital issues. One girls stood on stage shielding her eyes from the lights looking out into the audience. Another sacheted clockwise while everyone else sacheted counter clockwise. Yet another girl tried to stop suddenly and fell flat on her bum.
But nobody cried and the girls all beamed as the curtain closed.
Clara looked almost like a real ballerina as she spun and leaped across the stage. Or at least that's what it looked like after the little girls had performed. And maybe I'm a bit biased. But she looked good.
Clara smirked as the curtain closed. She was clearly pleased with herself.
Even the finale was entertaining. Clara's class came out first. I think the class was supposed to curtsy or bow or do some fancy ballet move, but only Clara did it before they stepped back.
Lilly's class shuffled out onto the stage looking a little bewildered. Lilly saw Clara and stood by her. It took both Clara and Miss Sara (the teacher) to get her into the right spot with her class and as the applause grew loud (prompting some to strain to see their parents) Lilly beamed.
Clara got one last surprise as she was awarded an honest-to-goodness medal for completing her second year of the program. Technically it's a silver medal, but she's convinced it's gold. I wouldn't recommend trying to correct her.
After the performances were done and we'd shot fancy pictures on the stage (complete with their bouquets of roses) we retired to the lobby for juice and cookies. With chocolate smeared all over their mouths they continued dancing away. We received a frightening glimpse of the future when Clara danced in front of some windows. She wasn't doing it for anybody other than herself. We may invest in a room fully decked out with mirrors. At the very least it'll keep her off drugs...
