Off Pointe

The Nutcracker

On Point

The Nutcracker

By Rena Rouge

Todays the day! The crème de la crème of Paris' finest ballet dancers will be stepping foot onto centre stage in a wondrous display of pointed feet and Christmas spirit.

The dancers at Agreste School of Dance have worked long and hard, and after this evening's performance companies around the world will have a list of who exactly will be filling their vacant spots.

We wish you all the best of luck, and we're sure you're about to deliver a stellar performance.

Merry Christmas to you all!

*****

As the curtains ascended, a collective hush overcame the audience, anticipation hanging in the air as the lights remained dimmed.

Spectators eagerly settled into their seats, their rustling whispers fading to nothing. The appearance of light intensified the atmosphere, and all eyes became fixated on the stage.

A palpable excitement swept through the audience, each and everyone eager to be transported into the whimsical realm of the Nutcracker.

The overture's melodies filled the theatre, weaving a spell that captured the hearts of both young and old, igniting a sense of holiday spirit.

And so it began. Months of hard work and commitment was about to be over, one beautiful routine at a time.

The theatre had been a buzz the past two days, not only for the up and coming performance but for what the performance would mean to so many of the dancers. Future careers were spawned on tonight's showcase, each and every dancer spending the past couple of days working to a point of exhaustion to grab the much prestigious spots in the London Ballet, China, Agreste and San Francisco. Adrien had even heard New York had sent a couple of scouts for the performance too — a rare and exciting opportunity.

The dress rehearsal had gone about as well as always. Mistakes were made with timings, a dancer fell over in the corps de ballet and pulled six snowflakes with her, Zoé snapped a ribbon on her well loved pointe shoes and Marc had forgotten his dance belt. Nothing major and nothing unfixable.

Adrien had danced what he needed to and spent the remainder of the time rehearsing through with Marinette making sure she stood out from the group she was performing with. She was quick at picking up routines and within a couple of hours she was ready to go.

Pride oozed from him as he watched her on stage. She hadn't let anything that had happened faze her. To be honest she'd been more worried about him than herself, which only made him love her more. Because he did. He loved her. He loved her perseverance, her resilience and her work ethic. He loved how the previous night had been spent with her cuddled in his arms; how she was ticklish on her sides and loved kisses on her neck. He was so deep into loving her, he couldn't breathe from the intensity, and he most certainly didn't see a way out.

"Are you ready?" Chloé came up behind him as the first act started on stage. They both stood watching speaking quietly away from other prying ears.

"I hope so," Adrien replied.

"You know what you've got to do. Just dance your little heart out, Adrikins, and give your father one last coronary before you leave the company."

Chloé's laughter made Adrien smile. His eyes scanned the scene in front of him before finding Marinette out in the opposite wings. She looked dazzling, outshining all the others in the same outfit.