Centre Stage: A Novel Read online

  Imagining myself on stage, excitement flickered through me. I couldn’t wait…

  All right, so maybe cleaning shoes with your eyes shut isn’t the brainiest thing to do. Amidst the thoughts of the audition, it slowly dawned on me that my hand felt damp. My eyes snapped open. There was black polish all over my fingers. I’d been so lost in my thoughts about the audition that I’d been obliviously spreading shoe polish over my hand. A very cool look — not!

  ‘Great,’ I sighed. Dumping the shoes on the floor, I went to the bathroom and began to wash my hands.

  But as I scrubbed at my fingers, my thoughts drifted back to the auditions. Just what were they going to be like?

  Chapter Four

  STAGE DOOR. The faded black letters stood out against the dirty-white background of the sign.

  ‘I suppose this must be it,’ Mum said.

  I looked around. We were standing outside a grey door in an alleyway behind the theatre. ‘Are you sure?’ I said to Mum. It didn’t look anything like the grand gold-painted front entrance of the theatre.

  Mum checked the letter in her hand. ‘Yes, the instructions say to go to the stage door in Victoria Street. This seems to be it. Come on, let’s go in.’

  She turned the handle. A man with a beard and a ponytail was sitting behind a glass panel at a desk. He smiled. ‘Here for the auditions?’

  So we were in the right place, after all.

  ‘It’s Sophie Tennison,’ Mum said, pointing to the list of names he had in front of him.

  The man ticked my name off the list. ‘Fine. Just go through that door there and straight to the stage.’

  He pressed a button and we walked through a small door and into a high-ceilinged corridor.

  I’d never been backstage at a proper theatre before. There were long black curtains hanging from the ceiling and pieces of scenery stacked by the walls. I felt a thrill of excitement.

  A woman with short dark hair came over. She was carrying a clipboard and looked super-efficient. ‘Hello, I take it you’re here for the auditions?’ she said briskly. ‘I’m Velda Brown, the company manager. Can I take your name, please?’

  ‘Sophie Tennison,’ I told her.

  Velda scanned down her list. ‘Yes, here you are. You’re auditioning to play Lucy?’

  I nodded.

  ‘Well, good luck,’ she told me. ‘Now, Mrs Tennison,’ she said, turning to Mum, ‘the auditions are going to be taking up most of the day. You’re very welcome to stay but, if you’d prefer, you can just leave Sophie here and come back later — about three o’clock.’

  Mum looked at me.

  ‘I don’t mind,’ I said. And to my amazement I realized I actually meant it. Being in the theatre felt somehow right. It sounds weird, I know, but I felt like I belonged there.

  ‘Well, if you’re sure, I’ll go and do some shopping, then,’ Mum said. ‘I’ll come back this afternoon. Good luck!’

  She gave me a hug and left.

  ‘We’ll be starting very shortly,’ Velda informed me. ‘Why don’t you join the others?’

  I walked slowly on to the stage. There were about twenty other people there. A lot of them seemed to know each other and they stood in small groups, talking. None of them took any notice of me.

  I looked out into the auditorium. There were rows and rows of empty red seats. Excitement swept through me as I imagined acting on the stage.

  ‘Sophie!’ Hearing a familiar voice, I swung round.

  ‘Justine!’ I exclaimed.

  Justine Wilcox came hurrying towards me. I hadn’t seen her for over a month but she looked just the same, with her long blonde hair caught up in two slides and her pale-blue eyes shining.

  ‘Are you auditioning too?’ she asked. ‘Sheila, the casting director, came in to my new school and did some auditions last week. She invited those of us she was interested in to come along today. She asked me to try out for Lucy.’

  Justine was auditioning to be Lucy! I stared at her in shock. Of course I’d known that there would be other people auditioning for Lucy but it had never in a million years crossed my mind that Justine might be one of them.

  ‘So are you auditioning for Lucy too?’ Justine asked.

  ‘Yes,’ I managed to say. My mind was racing. Justine was good at acting. In fact, when we’d been doing a school play of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe she’d ended up getting the part of Lucy instead of me.

  ‘Wouldn’t it be cool if we both got to be Lucy?’ Justine said.

  Had I heard right? ‘What do you mean?’ I demanded. ‘We can’t both be Lucy.’

  ‘Of course we can.’ Justine looked at me, her blue eyes surprised. ‘You do know there’s going to be two Lucys, don’t you?’

  Er… no. I shook my head.

  Justine seemed to grow a few inches taller. ‘In any big show with children, you have two teams of juveniles — that’s what child actors are called,’ she said importantly. ‘One team does one night and the next team does the other night. It’s to stop us getting too tired or something.’ She smiled. ‘I thought everyone knew that!’

  OK, so now I felt about as big as an ant.

  Velda clapped her hands. ‘Can you all sit down now!’

  As we all plonked ourselves down on the stage, two women and a man joined Velda. One of the women was tiny and slim with very short red hair and a sharp chin. The other woman had shoulder-length grey-blonde hair, wrinkled, tanned skin and huge hazel eyes like a tiger. She spoke first.

  ‘Hello. I’m Claire and I’m the director.’ Her voice was gravelly and sounded like she smoked too many cigarettes. ‘This is Dizzy,’ Claire said, pointing to the woman with red hair. ‘She’s the choreographer of the show, and this is Stefan.’ She indicated the man. ‘He’s the musical director.’ Stefan and Dizzy smiled round at us.

  Claire continued. ‘As most of you know, we are looking for two teams of four children to play the lead roles in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Although there will be singing and dancing involved, we’re not looking for perfect technique in singing and dancing. What we want are eight actors who can look like real children on stage. It is your acting skills that I am most interested in.’

  Relief ran through me. Acting I could do.

  Claire looked round at us with her cat-like eyes. ‘The procedure of the day will be like this…’ She reminded me a bit of Cruella de Vil in One Hundred and One Dalmatians. Of course, I don’t mean that she looked as if she was about to run off with a carload of cute puppies, but there was something about her that just made you want to look at her.

  ‘You will be split into two groups — boys and girls,’ she informed us. ‘Girls will be doing acting auditions this morning and singing and dancing auditions in the afternoon. Boys will be doing the opposite.’ She smiled. ‘Good luck. And try and enjoy your day.’

  I joined Velda with the other girls and she took us down a staircase at the side of the stage and into a large room with pale-green walls.

  ‘This is the green room,’ Velda told us. ‘You will wait here for your turn to audition.’

  I looked around. There were lots of small dressing rooms leading off a big central space, which had comfy chairs and tea- and coffee-making facilities.

  ‘I’ve got a list of the order in which you’ll be auditioning here,’ Velda said. ‘First of all you’re going to come up individually on to the stage to perform the piece you’ve prepared at home, and then Claire wants to do some group improvisation. At twelve o’clock we’ll break for lunch.’

  She pinned up the list of names. I was the third name down on the list and Justine was straight after me. ‘While you’re waiting, feel free to make yourselves a drink.’ Velda headed for the door. ‘I’ll be back in five minutes for the first person on the list.’

  She left. I got the speech I was going to do out of my bag. Justine had started to talk to a few of the other girls. I guessed they must be people from her school. But I didn’t mind being left on my own. I wanted a c
hance to go through my speech.

  After ten minutes I heard Velda calling my name. I jumped up.

  ‘It’s your turn, Sophie,’ Velda said.

  ‘Good luck,’ Justine smiled as I passed.

  I walked out on to the stage, my heart banging like a drum in my chest. Claire was sitting in the middle of the auditorium with Sheila, the casting director, and another couple of people who I didn’t know. They all looked at me and I felt myself beginning to blush. The stage suddenly seemed much bigger than it had done earlier.

  ‘When you’re ready,’ Claire called.

  I crouched down on the floor. OK, I told myself, concentrate.

  Shutting my eyes, I imagined that I was Sara. I took a deep breath. The theatre smelt of dust and paint and people. It was strange but also somehow comforting. I opened my eyes and looked at the floor. The words surged up inside me. My nerves vanished. I could do this.

  ‘Oh, Melchisedec,’ I began wistfully, imagining my pet rat was there in front of me. ‘It’s been a long day — a very long, hard day…’

  As I spoke, the magic I’d felt when I’d been acting in the film seemed to take over again. Suddenly I could see the walls of the attic room Sara was in. I could see the bare wooden floorboards, the tiny hard bed…

  At the end of the speech I blinked as the theatre came flooding back. There was the sound of applause. I stood up. All the adults in the auditorium were clapping.

  ‘Thanks, Sophie. That was really great,’ Claire called, standing up. ‘Go and take a break and I’ll see you for the improvisations and script readings in about an hour.’

  I smiled. ‘Thank you.’

  Waiting for everyone to have their audition seemed to take ages. After Justine had been for her audition she came and sat with me. She seemed pleased with how her audition had gone.

  ‘Just the dancing and singing to do now,’ I said. ‘I’m not looking forward to the dancing.’

  ‘Really?’ Justine said, looking just the tiniest bit pleased. ‘I’ve been going to ballet, tap and modern dance lessons after school at Clawson’s since I was four.’

  ‘So what’s it like — going to school there properly?’ I asked curiously.

  ‘Brilliant,’ Justine replied. ‘I mean, there’s all the normal boring lessons but you get to do loads of acting and dance and music. I love it!’

  She told me about the lessons they did — improvisation, character development, lots of singing and dancing, and then we talked about Charles Hope. Justine wanted to know all the gossip about people we’d been to primary school with. We only stopped talking when Velda came into the green room with some scenes from the play for us to prepare.

  She put us into pairs. I was with an older girl called Samantha. She read Susan and I read Lucy.

  Samantha was quite bossy but our scene seemed to go well. After all the pairs had been, everyone had to go on stage and Claire split us into two groups. She asked us first to improvise exploring an old house and then to improvise being lost in some woods. It was great fun. It was also interesting watching the other girls who were auditioning for Lucy. They all seemed very good at acting. I wondered which of us would be chosen. Me, I prayed. Please, let it be me.

  When we had all finished, Claire announced that it was lunchtime. ‘There’s food set out in the green room for you. You will have an hour’s break now and then you’ll be going with Dizzy and Stefan to do the dancing and singing auditions. OK?’

  We all nodded.

  ‘Come on,’ Justine said. ‘I’m starving!’

  I followed her back down to the green room. The acting audition had seemed to go well but would the dancing and singing go as smoothly?

  The music from the CD player blasted out. ‘OK, guys!’ Dizzy called above it. ‘One last practice and then I’ll watch you. Here we go!’ Her voice echoed around the large rehearsal room with its wooden floor. ‘Five, six, seven, eight!’

  Standing in front of us, she began the dance she had spent the last half hour teaching us.

  And spin, step forward and to the side and cut… The instructions raced through my head as I tried to keep up with her.

  It wasn’t too bad. The steps were all quite easy.

  Arms out, windmill and hands up…

  I could do it. A thrill raced through me. I was dancing and doing just fine.

  And round and to the side and back and spin…

  At last the piece of music came to an end and Dizzy pressed the stop button on the CD player. ‘Right, two minutes, then I’ll watch you. This half of the room first,’ she said, indicating my half of the line.

  I pushed my hair back from my damp forehead. I can do this, I thought determinedly.

  ‘First group!’ Dizzy called.

  I walked over to the centre of the room with five of the other girls, Justine included.

  Standing by the CD player, Dizzy turned the music on and counted us in again. ‘Five, six, seven, eight!’

  The music blasted out. Concentrating hard but remembering to smile and look as if I was enjoying it, I spun and stepped and twirled. As I finished the final spin I felt a huge rush of relief. I’d done it! OK, I probably hadn’t been as perfect as some of the others but at least I hadn’t gone majorly wrong.

  ‘Great,’ Dizzy said, writing down some notes on a clipboard she was holding. ‘Next group into position!’

  Ten minutes later the audition was over. As I walked out of the rehearsal room relief buzzed through me. I’d got through the dancing audition and, miracle of miracles, I hadn’t made a fool of myself!

  We went to another room with a small canteen in it and waited there while Stefan, the musical director, took us out in groups of four.

  The musical auditions were in a small room with a piano. Stefan played a number of scales and we had to sing them and then he taught us the chorus of one of the songs in the show. We had to sing it back to him — first together and then one at a time.

  I was in a group with Justine and the two other girls who were auditioning to be Lucy. I think I did OK. Stefan seemed pleased and I only had to sing the chorus once. Justine and one of the other girls had to sing it three times before they got it right.

  At the end of the day we all went on to the stage. People were talking excitedly, catching up on how each other’s auditions had been. I looked into the auditorium and saw that most people’s parents had arrived. Mum was there. Seeing me looking, she waved. I waved back but then Claire walked on to the stage and we all fell silent.

  ‘Well, that’s it for today,’ Claire said, smiling at us. ‘It’s been great to see you all. Dizzy, Stefan and I are now going to get together and make some decisions. Thank you all very much for coming. We’ll be in touch in the next few days.’

  She and Dizzy and Stefan smiled and then walked off.

  That was it. It was all over. There was a pause and then everyone started to move. The noise level rose as parents stood up in the auditorium and people began to gather their bags and coats from the wings.

  Justine came over to me. ‘Well, I’ll see you soon, I guess,’ she said to me. ‘Hopefully at the rehearsals!’

  ‘Fingers crossed!’ I smiled.

  We said goodbye and I went to meet Mum.

  ‘Well, how was it?’ she asked.

  ‘OK, I think,’ I replied.

  ‘Well, let’s go,’ Mum said. ‘You can tell me everything you’ve been doing on the way back home.’

  I looked round the theatre. I didn’t want to leave. Now I’d spent the day here I wanted the part of Lucy more than ever. I wanted to be on that stage, to act in front of a real audience.

  ‘Sophie?’ Mum said.

  ‘Coming,’ I sighed reluctantly.

  I followed her out of the auditorium. Walking out of the theatre’s front doors and on to the busy, bright, Saturday streets, I felt like I had been in another world.

  My world, I thought, and I was filled with a sudden desperate longing. I just had to get the part of Lucy — I had to!

/>   Chapter Five

  ‘Now write down four places — two you’d like to go to and two you wouldn’t,’ Ally instructed, sitting cross-legged on her bed.

  I scribbled down Alton Towers, ice skating, school and the North Pole on the four pieces of paper in front of me.

  Harriet, Ally and I were sleeping over at Ally’s house. Over supper, I’d told Ally and Harriet all about the audition — and Justine, of course. Now we were in Ally’s bedroom playing one of those games where you find out who your ideal boyfriend is and what your perfect date would be like. You know the type.

  Ally put the pieces of paper in a mug and placed it next to the other mug on her bedside table. That mug had boys’ names in — we’d each had to write down two boys we liked and two we didn’t.

  ‘So who’s going first?’ Ally asked eagerly.

  ‘Me,’ I said. Ally held out the mugs and I took a piece of paper from each. I placed them in front of me. Then Harriet had a go, then Ally.

  ‘Go on, Soph,’ Ally urged. ‘Read yours.’

  I opened the pieces of paper. Seeing what was written there, I groaned. ‘My perfect date would be with Mr Davey and we’d go to the cinema.’

  Ally and Harriet burst out laughing.

  ‘Oooo,’ Harriet teased. ‘Sophie fancies Mr Davey!’

  I hit her with a pillow. ‘I so do not!’

  Still giggling, Harriet opened hers next. ‘My perfect date would be…’ she paused and wrinkled her nose, ‘with Tom, Sophie’s brother, and we’d go to the North Pole.’

  I glanced at Ally. She’d gone slightly red and I knew it was she who had put Tom’s name down. I know she fancies him although she’ll never admit it. She saw my look and hastily started to open her pieces of paper. ‘My turn! My perfect date would be with,’ she smiled, ‘Nathan and we’d go ice skating. Cool!’