Adopted by Six on Broadway

Tonight We Are Live!

Angie's POV 

Bianca nodded, closed her eyes and hurried offstage. She waited backstage with wide eyes as Caleb and I took our positions. Me in a small kitchen cleaning, and him with a really fun prop that took two days to build, Milky White. There's actually a crew member inside, controlling it, and when Milky White has to eat the ingredients, they'll grab them from inside the mouth. (By the way it's about the size of a cow so the crew member isn't cramped.)

Dara gulped down the last bit of tea from the thermos, sent a pleading look to the ceiling, and took her place in the Baker's house with Dan (the baker). The curtain opened and there we were frozen in position.

Our narrator came onstage.

"Once upon a time, in a far off kingdom."

"I wish."

And just like that we had begun. I prayed that I remembered my contacts and I didn't mistake the stepsisters like in rehearsal.

Set down the broom grab the rag clean the floors. Oh look it's time to get bullied by the stepsisters. Lentils (thanks Beth aka Stepmother). Birds. Ahhahahahaha. Nice Cinderella! Good Cinderella! Pull to tight. Get slapped by Elise (one of the girls playing one of the stepsisters. The other stepsister is played by Maddy). Fun.

Into the woods! 

By the time I was at the grave, in the second number. I was sitting beside a fake tree with someone climbed up into the fake branches. It's terrifying up there, the branches are really shaky with the weight of a human being, and you could fall at any moment. 

Natalie, the very talented freshman playing the Tree Mom/Granny/the Giant's Wife, was up in the tree, singing and holding the silver dress and gold slipper behind her back when I noticed something. Her legs were curled around the trunk of the tree and her eyes were fearful. She was also rocking back and forth.

As she was about to fall right when the dress was supposed to drop instead she dropped it on the low tree branch and quickly steadied herself. I grabbed the dress, and she dropped the shoes as the orchestra played a couple extra bars to cover it. I sent a plead to the theatre gods that the audience wouldn't notice. 

A little while in Dara leaps for my shoe while I'm still wearing it, and the impact is so sudden and I wasn't ready that I fall over, and stand up and run. 

And then when I have my next scene I'm onstage with one shoe. Sondheim is really complicated, and On the Steps of the Palace is complicated with the melody and the lyrics together. I'm terrified as I start singing. I can see the corner of Cinderella's Prince's sash out of the corner of my eye. 

And finally Dara and I exchange shoes and I run for it and do a quick change. And then I get my shoe back. And then I become a princess. Intermission!

Bianca and I huddled together near the nose steamy things which I need to learn what they're called and sipped some tea that Caleb's uncle had brought backstage for us.

Dara huddled with Natalie (Dara was Natalie's student mentor), and they talked.

Caleb was coughing and drinking tea. He had coughed directly after Giants in the Sky and wheezed his way through the rest of Act 1. His uncle had gone home after dropping off the tea to grab his inhaler.

During Act 2 I made sure to not trip on my own feet which I normally did in the shoes they'd given me for princess life.

During No One is Alone, I sneezed. I was so ashamed, but nobody noticed. During the curtain call  the cheering was like nothing I've ever heard. I beamed and gracefully took my bow. 

But it was extra loud when it was Bianca's turn. Mostly because the entire cast erupted with applause and cheers. 

It was the greatest feeling in the world. Nothing is like live theatre.