The crimson silk curtains billowed gracefully across the wooden stage, coming together in the centre. I stood en pointe, my hands arched above me in a perfect orb, wearing a smile while beads of sweat trickled down my temples. As the curtains closed, the audience erupted into applause. Was this the last time I would ever perform ballet?
The dim lights beyond the curtains brightened, and I breathed a sigh of relief. The murmurs of the crowd continued until the stage was empty. The other girls and I began to relax. Our white tutus still glittered under the stage lights, resembling swans. The faux diamond headpiece was starting to give me a headache, but it faded into insignificance as my eyes filled with emotion and a smile danced upon my lips. How could it be over already? It felt like only yesterday that I had stepped into the dance room for the first time at the age of six.
The stage lights faded away, and we were standing in the darkness, our shadows cast onto the white screen behind us. I wasn't ready to leave the stage. The shadows on the screen made us look tall and lanky, with very little poise for ballerinas. I would miss being on stage, practising with my friends until our toes said 'enough'. The green rooms were filled with racks and racks of costumes covered in sequins. The light made patterns on the walls, reflecting purple sequins from one of the costumes.
We clung to each other as if it were our last moments on Earth, perched on wooden stools that seemed to anchor us in time. Our sobs turned into hiccups, marking the rhythm of our shared catharsis. The smell of a dozen girls perspiring profusely was starting to set in, but it didn't matter. Stiff tutus and ballet slippers got in our way, but it still didn't matter. We knew that we would never again be together in a green room filled with tons of others staring at us as if we'd gone crazy, and we would never again be decked out in full costumes with an uncomfortable amount of powder on our faces.
No comments:
Post a Comment