If you’re anything like Darcy Watson, you don’t have time to read this. Life was challenging enough trying to make her way unnoticed through Year 9, before Darcy got involved with Becca Martin’s band. Darcy has many talents, the most obvious being able to play flute to a distinction standard. When you want to be a professional musician, every minute counts and Darcy is rapidly running out of time. Before she was invited to join Becca’s band, all Darcy had to worry about was practicing her flute, minding her special need’s brother David, and getting good grades in every lesson (even if Mr. Renley’s food collection in his beard was distracting). Getting up early every morning to straighten her hair, ignoring a stream of cyber abuse on Facebook, being forced to go on a date with the most clueless boy in Sopwell Secondary School, moderating arguments between her band members, Becca, Holly and Lauren the Queen of the Evil Eye; Darcy could manage all of this if she didn’t have to choose between performing at Sopwell’s Got Talent with her new friends, or performing at the High Achiever’s Ceremony at the Queen Elizabeth Hall i, for her parents. Darcy may be only 13 years old, but she wants to be so much more than “just” a girl. Why does she have to have boyfriend? Why are all the songs for girls about nothing other than being obsessed by some guy? Why is music defined by gender? Can you be talented at more than one thing? Darcy has to give a performance of a lifetime, but which one will she choose? There is only one way to find out.
1 part