Hunting the Fairy Tale

Chapter 90 - Let's Dance

Willow

Looking around me at all the dancers running about, feeling the nervous tension in the air, I'm suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of nervousness of my own. Paisley ran off, leaving me in the care of her grandaunt, who led me to the row of tables and chairs arranged in the middle of the community hall for the board members (also the evaluators) to use. The tables contain notepaper, pens, bottled water and a bowl of candies each.

From what I understand, the board, consisting of ballet instructors, financial sponsors, the mayor, and a couple of town councilmen and women, will be watching today's prepared dance numbers, recording their observations, both good and bad and giving the dancers a score out of 10. The mark is allocated to the entire group if it is not a solo dance, but they are allowed to highlight certain dancers in the group, both positively and negatively.

There will be a meeting on Monday evening, during which they'll be comparing notes and scores, and the outcome of these discussions will decide which dancers to cast in which roles for the upcoming performances and some of today's dance items will be used in television advertisements and be showcased during upcoming ballet variety shows.

The entire event is being recorded on three video cameras set up from different angles, handled by professionals, for future reference and use as required. Apparently, ballet is quite a serious affair in Fairweather, and the performance standards range from mediocre to expert. I heard that it's not uncommon for talent scouts to attend the productions in search of hidden gems. 

There are regular low-key variety shows throughout the year to keep enough cash and interest flowing to support the trainers and build decor. Each year, there is one full production featuring only the best dancers. Most of the patronage is from the retirement home and village in Shingle Bluff, but the shows see a lot of support from even so far as Grey Mount.

The association relies on the income from the smaller shows and donations to create and maintain the decor and have half-decent costumes for the main productions. Apparently, the costumes have fallen into sad disrepair due to the lack of a dedicated costume manager and the exorbitant prices charged by the costume repair companies they've been forced to use.

I was rather surprised to hear that ballet formed such an important part of the community of Fairweather and finally found out that it was because Briar Cove was home to our country's most famous Prima Ballerina, currently retired and residing in the Shingle Bluff retirement village. She has always been the glue keeping it all together, but due to her ongoing health issues, that glue is not sticking as well as it used to, hence the decline in contributions and interest, resulting in shabby costumes.

Ms Alexandra La Fontaine (that is her stage name) was unable to attend today's proceedings due to said health issues and will be evaluating the performances based on the video recordings before Monday's meeting, enabling her to give her input as well. I've seen her perform a few times in recordings of her glory days, and she was indeed a force to be reckoned with. Beautiful, graceful, with a flair for mischief that made her performances sparkle. I would love to meet her one day.

The main reason that so much weight is placed on today's evaluation is that only the most dedicated and talented dancers are picked to participate in the year's grand performance. Everybody wants to take part in it, as excerpts are televised nationwide as part of the yearly arts and culture festival that takes place all over our country.

Last year, when I was watching the broadcasts on TV, I did not think for one second that the Fairweather Ballet Association's fate would one day matter to me as much as it does now. I wish I'd paid more attention at the time because I cannot remember if I'd seen Paisley in the ballet montages that were televised among all the other activities. I'm not entirely sure I even saw the episode featuring Fairweather. I was mostly only interested in Mount Sovereign's appointed time slot, as I was a member of the team responsible for their costumes and makeup.