enamor:
/iˈnamər,eˈnamər/
to be filled with a feeling of love for.
"Dance for me" I whispered in her ear. She smiles. We were outside in a garden near a lake. It was beautiful. The sun was setting. She took off her shoes and stood up on the grass.
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Malena
I bite my lip as I watch Alice repeat the steps I missed. Her slender ankle fit into a small pink ballet slipper expertly lifts.
"Your form is a bit off. Bend your knees." She calls out softly.
I nod and she smiles softly at me.
In her early thirties, Alice was beautiful and I often wondered when I was younger why she never married.
"I am married to ballet" she would joke often.
She was like an older sister to me. I cherished her.
She walks over to me in her white stockings and black coaching jacket.
"Just a few more times."
She is at eye level with me.
"I have been asked to choreograph Swan Lake for the Royal Ballet in Paris. They requested I use some of my dancers.
I smile brightly.
"That's amazing Alice, congratulations."
She chuckles, "I have a position for you in a dance."
My eyes light up. Never did I ever think I would get such an opportunity.
She smiles brightly.
"I want you to be the black swan."
My eyes widen in shock.
"W-why Alice."
She walks off slowly.
"I am tired I suppose. I can imagine your experience sometimes being a black woman in France."
I look down.
"Could be worse."
"It's swan lake's choreography with a twist, it will depict the suffering of the black swan, a mirror of society."
"I want you to embody the suffering of the black swan. The black swan is mistreated, misunderstood, blamed, and stereotyped. The white swan is viewed as angelic and pure. It reflects the racial disparity in this country. I want to portray it in the choreography. I want to teach a lesson."
I smile softly in admiration.
"This is why I wanted to be a dance teacher, a choreographer, to tell a story, to teach people. Dance must have meaning otherwise it's just movement. Just pretty to look at. It must convey something, it must become a language."
She walks back to me in fervor and puts a hand on my heart "You must speak to their hearts."
My eyes shine and brim with tears as I crash into her arms.
"Thank you."
She softly pats my shoulder.
"But most of all I chose you because you were the first dancer who brought tears to my eyes."
