Project Dance

Chapter 4

As I hear the other girls chatting animatedly after ballet class about summer intensives they attended over the summer, I fight the urge to tell them what Madame Ana told me about Turnout closing.

However, I know it is strictly confidential, and I would never break her trust. No matter how  huge this secret feels.

Sweat clings to my neck, and I wipe it off with my towel.

"Where'd you go over the summer, Cel?" Giada asks. 

"Um, SAB, ABT, and New Mexico Ballet," I reply, hoarse.

"You okay?" Cassie chimes in. Both of them look concerned, and I turn away. 

"Yeah. I'm fine."

It couldn't be further from the truth. Jesus.

I shoot a quick text to Helene.

Me: Hey. How are you? Wanna get froyo?

I sigh, seeing that Helene read the message but hasn't responded. I guess she still hasn't gotten past the mourning period.

I shove my phone into my bag and march out of the studio, ignoring the worried looks that Cassie and Giada shoot my way.

I put in my headphones, turning on my favorite Gershwin piece, "An American in Paris." Ever since I was a little girl, I've lost myself in music. It just feels like the most natural thing in the world, especially as a classical ballerina.

"Celeste!"

I whirl around at the familiar voice. Madame Ana.

She looks frantically out of breath, but there's a gleam in her eye that I don't miss. She's waving a poster around fanatically.

"Celeste, wait." Madame Ana nudges me the poster.

"What's this?" I unfurl the poster with dread, half-expecting it to be advertising some other ballet studio that she wants to send me off to after Turnout closes.

But it isn't. My eyes dart over the paper.

PROJECT DANCE

Sign up for this universally acclaimed competition today! Deadline for audition sign-ups are September 1.

Details: Choreograph a dance for two. Your challenge is to mesh two different styles of dance together: ballet and contemporary! Two dancers per entry, no more and no less!

Ages: 15-19

If you are invited to advance to the semifinal, it is being held in Washington, D.C. The finals will be held in New York City, New York.

Preliminary auditions in the U.S. are in the following areas:

New York City, New York September 15-17

Boston, Massachusetts September 20-22

Santa Fe, New Mexico September 24-26

I stop reading. Project Dance is coming to Santa Fe. Holy shit. Project Dance is coming to Santa Fe. Everyone and their mother in the ballet world knows about Project Dance. Big names like Mikhail Baryshnikov, Misty Copeland, Svetlana Zakharova, and Natalia Osipova have either mentored or danced for Project Dance. It not only attracts thousands of dancers from across the U.S., but the winners of the competition also win two thousand dollars and practically  guaranteed admission to any top ballet school in the country.

 Although participants of Project Dance are judged for choreography, they are also judged for their technique, artistry and skill. If I even come close to winning, I would have a much better shot at getting into SAB, and then New York City Ballet.