Ballet Shoes: Encore

Just A Warm Up

No long intro note today, proceed

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Third Person's P.O.V.

Age: 31

"That was great you guys!" Caroline beamed.

The group of four dancers onstage smiled and expressed their thanks as they caught their breath. They had just finished practicing their lyrical routine for the charity show that was a mere two hours away. It was quite a technical piece but they did well as Caroline mentioned.

"Now who's next for the stage?" Caroline mumbled as she looked down at her clipboard, "Ah, yes. Ben! It's your turn with the stage."

At the mention of his name, Ben's head perked up. He unraveled himself from the complex floor stretches he was doing and made his way towards Caroline. He slipped off his split-sole shoes and left them within her vicinity once he reached her. Ben also took the small red prop that resembled an apple that Caroline held out to him before continuing the trek onto the stage. All dancers present in the theatre space, as well as those lingering in the dressing rooms, trained their eyes on him as he got into his starting position which was upstage right.

This was quite strange. Ben normally has his time onstage several hours before call time. He also never performs routines for the show in front of anyone aside from Caroline and the tech crew. Once other performers arrive, he goes around helping where he can and ensures his legs stay warmed. Hence, the stretches and practicing of an occasional move up until Caroline's pep talk. He was breaking all of that by going up onstage now.

What could this mean? No one had time to dwell on it as music filtered through the stage speakers and echoed in the theatre. Signifying the beginning of the dance Ben was performing.

It was clear from the very first move that this piece was going to be very technical. It would also incorporate a lot of gymnastic-type moves that required excellent control and upper body strength. A great deal of flexibility too. All of which were skills Ben possessed. Thus, he executed them flawlessly and smoothly.

The apple-like prop Ben received earlier was heavily utilized as he danced. Great emphasis was placed on throughout the piece. It was transferred from his mouth to his hands and back again several times in line with the music. All while the steps increased in difficulty as the routine progressed. The other dancers in the theatre remained silent as they watched Ben in awe. Never having witnessed him practice like this for the charity show before.

Soon enough, the music began winding down. It was slow in nature from the start but its overall sound shifted just enough to identify that the end was near. As such, Ben did one more move that showed off his gymnastic ability before standing up and taking a dramatized bite out of the apple. Gently dropping it and letting it roll a little bit away from him. Turns out that it wasn't a prop but rather the actual fruit. With that, Ben did one final step and the dance came to an end with his back to the audience.

A few moments of silence passed before all hell broke loose.

Everyone in the theatre applauded. Some louder than others. Much louder than others. A few dancers even cheered as Ben went about collecting the apple and exiting the stage. As soon as he was off the stage, a small swarm of younger dancers ran up to him. They promptly began talking at Ben all at once. Their praises and inquiries quickly becoming a mess of gibberish he couldn't understand.

Before this could go on for too long, Caroline loudly tapped her pen against her clipboard a few times. The sound it made was somewhat jarring. Everyone promptly fell silent after that which Ben was very much grateful for. All the yelling was starting to get overwhelming.

"Next for the stage are Lindsay, Diana, Margo and Kylie," Caroline stated calmly, "Let's not waste anymore time. There's only a couple more hours before show time."

At her words, the four girls hurried onstage to practice their contemporary group dance and everyone soon fell back into their previous activity. Ben didn't go back to his prior stretching though. Instead, he made his way backstage to the dressing rooms and got ready for his first piece. The costume for his jazz routine this year required some face paint so he needed to get to it.

Fifteen minutes before Caroline's usual pep talk, there was a knock on Ben's dressing room door. The brunette glanced back at the door to find Finn leaning on it. He was also in full costume.

"Oh hey Finn," Ben greeted, "Need something?"

"No," Finn replied, "I just wanted to say you were great earlier."

Ben's lips briefly twitched upwards as he resisted the urge to smile before he said, "Thanks but I was just warming up with that routine."

Finn's eyes widened and he nearly lost his balance as he processed Ben's statement. That was just a warm up? How- What?!?! If that's true, then what the hell is he performing this year?

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I don't remember how this idea ended up so far from what I originally intended but Finn made another appearance! Idk why I've latched onto him like this when he's very much a minor character but whatever!

Here's the link for the dance Ben did to warm up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmpXh0rwqWQ

Have a good rest of your day/night!