Traffic was jammed up by the time they clocked into the main road. It was about 8 minutes to 11 am when last she checked. It's gonna be a miracle if they could make it to the venue on time, Pearl felt nervous~ this wasn't healthy for her mind and emotion at this present hour. " Gosh~ this is killing me." Her frustration pulled on her face.
" Try to be as relaxed as you can " Kareen empathized. " We should be there in the next 20 to 30 minutes." She assured her with a knowing look drawn to her face.
They soon started moving and slowly, they drifted past more cars–heading down the lane which diverted into a T-junction. At the end of the intersection, Elvis whirled down the artery heading to D'ROSE FLORAL DANCE AUDITORIUM where the program was scheduled to hold.
Their car finally pulled up at the entrance, Pearl was the first to shoot out. " Hurry, over here." Mrs Valery called from the door. She looked as if her world was crashing. " Let's get changed first, Kimberly is on, performing Odette with Swan Lake." She said, rushing her down the corridors into one of the dressing rooms lined up.
" Giselle is next~ we should be done before she ends" She instructed. Pearl just kept nodding at her every statement as she managed to pull on her make-up.
Giselle's plot is influenced by both a book, written by Heinrich Heine, and a poem, written by Victor Hugo. These sources inspired the character of Giselle, a young girl who loves to dance so much that she dies from dancing because of her poor health conditions.
Giselle is a fairy classical ballet that tells the story of Giselle, a beautiful young woman who dies of a broken heart when she learns that the man she has fallen in love with was in fact, a nobleman named Duke Albrecht and that they could not be together. Giselle's spirit eventually saves his life, allowing her to rest in peace.
AUDITORIUM
After making sure their car was well parked, the two made their way into the auditorium. As quietly as they could, they slowly crawled into their seat~ careful enough not to block a view or provoke anyone. They spotted Kimberly in the distance as she delicately performed her leaps among other dancers.
She dances Odette's variation from Act II while the spotlight highlights her on the large stage~ a frightened look drawn to her face with an incredibly precise movement. Her definite vulnerability just like the white swan, made Elvis' heart thump for a minute.
"Swan Lake" is a classical ballet composed between the years 1875 to 1876 by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. This emotionally and technically challenging piece was initially considered a failure but went on to become one of the most popular ballets of all time.
Swan Lake is the love story of Prince Siegfried, who on a hunting trip encounters a flock of swans, falls in love with the Swan Queen, Odette, and swears his allegiance and undying love to her. As a result of a curse by the evil sorcerer Baron von Rothbart, Odette can only take human form between midnight and daybreak.
" She's amazingly good."He praised which brought Kareen's gaze to him. He smiled, catching on to her glare. " It's not what you're thinking~ I just love her performance." He explained which made her chuckle.
" Not what you're thinking either~" She teased. " I just didn't know you're a pro in these performances. Telling what's great from what's off is such an arc thing to point out." She praised and he feigned a smile.
The applause thereafter from the crowd drew their attention back to the podium. They instinctively joined in as the dancers bowed and quickly trod off into the dark leading to the back of the stage.
" She's coming... " Kareen alarmed. " Pearl is performing now " She glowed, setting her camera on a roll. Elvis kept his gaze fixed so as not to miss a speck out of her performance.
The piano slowly announced the next performance~ The setting was of exuberance and the energy portrayed exhibited the adventurous and confident nature of a young man in his prime.
The music swept the audience through the story with the perfect complement to the dance– the young male playing Albrecht, exhibited his romantic purpose while his body boldly yet gently orchestrated his movement with beauty and love so the crescendo outbursts and unrelenting pace of the music helped to tell the story.
Pearl's entrance as Giselle brought every eye glued to the carefree ' skipping-like' rhythm movement of her body which told her innocence and naivety defining her character as a trusting and vulnerable young woman barely out of childhood– the melodies told the sunny day in the town.
Her forward-tilted upper body telling her softness with rounded arms in alignment with her head met the male dancer midway. Their love story began which soon exploded into the dramatic pivot of the story. The music instinctively accentuated forest scenes, humming threatening storm music– warning of dangers to come from the darkness of night.
Melodies suddenly softened, and the slow and soulful outpouring of grief was displayed by an emotional cello solo in the minor key as they departed from each other. The stage went blank and the next spotlight showed the male dancer being a flower to her grave.
The audience was drawn into sorrow~ they couldn't back their tears. Elvis and Kareen held on each other's hands and cried. Their heart felt broken and pitiful, knowing how painful it is to lose a loved one.
It ended with Giselle's forgiveness of Albrecht's betrayal and deceit, redeeming him from his guilt which emphasized her innocence.
The auditorium went into an uproar of applause and cheers with everyone on their feet. The quality of Pearl's exhibition of emotions was beyond expectation~ leading the audience down the plot of the story of Giselle. Kareen kept hailing and shouting in cheers.
" That was our final performance for this year's Ballerina contest." The female host announced as the crowd settled back into their seats. " We'll take a breather as our judges tally the scores." She briefly added and trod off backstage. Kareen and Elvis sat in anticipation, uttering prayers intermittently. Pearl was tense as well, Kimberly noticed.
With a faint smile, she nudged her on the shoulders, and they both shared a smile. " Don't worry, you did well~ Whether win or not, remember you did your best, huh?" She encouraged and Pearl nodded with a thanks.
" You were great as well."
They both chuckled. Not long after, they heard the host call up all the contestants. In a long line, they all bowed once again. With a list in hand, the host announced the 3rd, 2nd, and 1st runner-ups. Elvis instinctively shot up with applause when Kimberly won the 1st runner-up. Kareen was a bit surprised at his outburst which made him embarrassed as a couple of stares joined Kareen's.
" What?" He sheepishly queried, settling back in his seat. She just tilted her head with a chuckle, returning her gaze to the host.
" And our winner is..." She howled, taking a second and last glance at the name again. "... Pearl Lawson and her crew~!!!"
The crowd instantly roared with applause as they stood to their feet. Pearl was dumbfounded for a moment– her eyes glittered in shock. Kimberly and her crew intuitively wrapped her up as they bounced around jubilating.
THE PARKERS
Caleb who had locked himself up in his room right after they had arrived home had heard the tunes of Giselle play on the television hung across the room on the wall. At first, he felt no interest at all but then, the emotions portrayed by Giselle got his attention.
It felt like someone finally understood what he was going through at the moment. The tears that ripped his soul from within broke out like waterfalls, drowning him in sorrow as he watched Albrecht mourn his lover.
Why didn't death take him instead?~ he should have taken both of them. The thoughts tortured his subconscious mind as he clenched on Scarlet's portrait. Even though Giselle forgave Albrecht, Caleb felt he never deserved any from Scarlet for his inability to keep her safe.
Her sisters and parents stood behind the door in shambles, they couldn't leave him to himself. Knowing how much he loved her, they knew he was going through a lot. He was truly fighting the toughest battle in his life at the moment.
Hearing his tears tore him apart, their heart went out to him. They didn't know for how long he was going to continue like that– forever locked from the outside world.
But then, Mrs Camilla thought to talk to her friend, Iris about the situation at hand. She needs to do something as soon as possible if she does not want to lose his only son due to the incident. They need a way to get him out of his coat of darkness– They'll need to try as hard as they can even with the last drop of strength they got left.