The Fiche List

Chapter Three

3. Take a ballet class

It was an open, airy room, with high windows above the mirrors lining the wall letting the warm sunlight stream though onto the worn wooden floor. Seventeen girls between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five lined the long barre, decked out in an array of tight-fitting clothing. Lea, Sean and myself took up the three slots at the back of the line. It was Sean’s attempt to hide from all the amused eyes that locked on the girly pink tights, white singlet and hot pink tutu that his muscular body sported. Pathetic, considering the mirrors denied anyone privacy in the room. I had my lips pressed together to contain my laughter as I followed the teacher’s instructions and rose up and down slowly on the balls of my feet. 

“I still can’t believe you two actually made me go through with this,” Sean hissed in my ear. 

“I can’t believe you thought we would let you not. You know us better than that.”

He grumbled as we stuck our right legs out to the side to start a new series of stretches. I had to bite down on my lip as I glanced at him in the mirror. A ripple of laughter still made my body quiver, and I quickly glanced away and pulled a face at the camera Sandra was holding in the corner. She grinned at me. 

   Since I wanted to take the class with Lea, and neither of us were letting Sean get out of it to film us, we needed reinforcements, so Lea called Sandra in. She was both of our friends, but more Lea’s than mine. My circle of friends didn’t extend much past the two lined up doing ballet stretches behind me.
   “Ok, everyone, there are four basic positions in ballet that every move a ballet dancer makes begins or ends in. First position is like so, with your heels just touching, your feet turned out as far as comfortable. With your arms, make a gentle circle so your fingertips are pointing at each other. Beautiful, girls! And boy.” A trickle of laughter rippled down the line. “Second position is the same as first position but with a space of one foot between your feet. Your arms go out to the sides… Perfect! Now, third position is rarely used anymore because it is too similar to fifth. However, the arms… drop your right arm back down into the position you held it for first, and leave your left where it is. We’ll come back to this, so moving on to fourth position, place your right foot in front of your left like so… good! Keep your feet turned out like.. yes, and your arms… third from the end lift your left arm higher a little, there we go. Beautiful! Okay, now fifth position, all I want you to do is move your right foot back until it’s touching your left, keeping it turned out the same, and with your arms form a gentle curve above your head with each that allows your fingertips to just lightly touch…”

“A circle,” the girl in front of me said flatly.

“Yes.”

“Well just say that then. You don’t need to decorate your sentences with gentle, light flowers,” she mocked under her breath.

“Shh!” her friend hissed. “You promised!”

She muttered something I didn’t catch because the line of girls erupted in giggles. They were all staring my way, so I looked over my shoulder… and pressed my lips together really hard to try to stifle my own laughter. Sean was standing with a fake straight face, his chin tipped up defensively as Ms. Silvstone wrapped her hand around his ankle and repositioned his leg and foot, tutting under her breath, then stood up and placed her hand on his back and chest whilst telling him to “Breathe in like your filling your lungs with your last breath and hold that position”. He took the demanded exaggerated breath (sparking another ripple of giggles) and (satisfied, apparently) she grabbed his arms and tried to shape them more elegantly. 

“What is this?” She shook his arms and they moved easily. “Strength, boy! Use these!” She tapped his bicep. “Your arms should not move! Firm positions paired with the softening grace of their lines and the use of the fingers creates the elegance of ballet! Well,” she conceded, “that is one of the many reasons.” She shook his arms again, and met resistance this time. “Better!” Glancing over him again, she nodded approvingly, her mouth twitching in amusement at the tutu.