Ann Martin - Baby-Sitters Club 027

When the class ended we all applauded Mme Noelle. She bowed her head graciously as she always does and then held up one hand to get our attention. She had an announcement to make.

"Mes petites," she said. (That's what she calls us. It's French for "my little girls.") "I want to advise you thot the Stoneybrook Civic Center will be holding aw-di-see-ons for Swan Lake." (Did you get that? She meant auditions.) "The aw-di-see-ons, as I understond it, are Soturday next. Those girls who feel ready might be brave to try out." Auditions for Swan Lake! At the Stoneybrook Civic Center! That was really something. Swan Lake is a ballet about an enchanted swan, and it's one of the most beautiful ballets ever choreographed. And now it was going to be performed at the Stoneybrook Civic Center, which is a wonderful theater. The theater's not in New York City, but it's so good that it might as well be. A lot of famous stars you would have heard of are always performing there.

I sat down on the floor to unlace my toe shoes. I was thinking that someday I'll be good enough to audition for a ballet like that. Maybe a few years from now. Three years, two . . . if I were lucky. Who could tell? Maybe even next year. I picked up my dance bag and started to head for the dressing room.

"Modemoiselle Romsey." Mme Noelle caught me just as I was almost out the door. Oh, no. My heart sank. Was she going to give me one last correction? Just when I had been able to end the class on such a good note. I braced myself to hear what she had to say.

"Ma petite, do you think you might aw-di-see-on for Swan Lake?" she asked.

"Me?" My voice came out in a high-pitched squeak. "Well, I don't think this year. Maybe I'll be ready next year. I mean - " "You're a gifted doncer," Madame cut me off. "This production will be quite professional. It would be a wonderful experience for you. Broadening. I do hope you consider, dear." She handed me a flier with the information. Then Madame smiled at me and gestured for me to go ahead of her out the door.

"Thank you, Madame," I managed to sputter.

I glanced at the flier. It said that there would be three audition calls altogether, with eliminations after each one. As 1 walked to the dressing room, my thoughts were flying. Mme Noelle had singled me out to encourage me to audition. Maybe I actually should try out.

In the dressing room the other girls were all talking about Madame's news.

"The Stoneybrook Civic Center!" said one. "You know, the productions in that theater get reviewed by the papers in New York City." "I bet a lot of dancers from New York will come out for the auditions," said another. "I bet the competition will be really stiff." "Yeah, like A Chorus Line." "Oh, no!" groaned Katie Beth.

Katie Beth was still wearing her toe shoes. She leaped to the center of the dressing room floor and began turning pirouettes as fast as she could.

"Do I get the part? Do I get the part?" she called out.

After her last pirouette, she struck a pose from the ballet, nuzzling her cheek against her shoulder as a swan might do to preen its feathers.

We all applauded.

"Encore!" we shouted. "Encore!" Katie Beth collapsed on the floor, breathless and panting.

"No way," she said, laughing. "I guess I'm no enchanted swan. All I am is a tired ballet student." After I had changed, I stuffed my sweaty tights and leotard into my bag. Then I slung the bag over my shoulders and waved to my friends.

"Do you think you'll try out?" asked Katie Beth, as we left school.

"Maybe," I said. "I don't know." That was true. I didn't.

Outside the school, Mama was waiting for me in the car. Becca and Squirt were with her. I slid into the backseat next to Squirt. He grabbed my cheek and gave me a spitty kiss.

"How was class?" Mama asked.

"Good," I said. I told her about the auditions for Swan Lake. I told her that Mme Noelle had drawn me aside at the end of class to encourage me to try out.

"That's wonderful, honey," Mama said. I could see her smiling in the rearview mirror.

"It is," I replied with a sigh, "but I don't know. Maybe it's too professional for me right now. I mean, how can I compete with dancers from New York? I mean, do I even want to?" "It's up to you," Mama said. "It does sound like an opportunity. You might want to go ahead and go to the audition even if it is scary. But that's your decision, Jessi. You just let me know." Parents. Doesn't it seem backwards that they always want to make decisions for you when you don't want them to? Like, "No, you can't stay out past 9 PM," or "No, you can't get your ears pierced." But when you actually might want them to go ahead and tell you what to do, what do they say? "It's up to you. You just let me know." Mom pulled the car into traffic and turned on the radio.

I stared out the window. I pictured myself onstage in a swan costume. I couldn't be Odette, of course. Odette is the queen of the swans and the star of the ballet. But maybe I could be one of the swan maidens who dance in the corps. In my fantasy I did quick turns across the stage. I was a graceful, mysterious swan escaping from hunters.

Okay. The fantasy did it. I was hooked. Yes, I did want to be in Swan Lake. More than anything, in fact. Right then and there I decided to try out. Yes, I'd go to the audition, all right. I would do it.

Chapter 4.

Before I knew it, it was Wednesday afternoon, and time for me to baby-sit for DEREK MASTERS! and his little brother, Todd. If you think I was excited, you should've seen Becca. When I was getting ready to leave, she followed me to our front door, firing questions at me all the way.

"Ask him if he knows Lament. I mean, of course he knows Lament. Ask him if Lamont's as nice as he is on TV. Ask him what kind of games Lamont likes to play. Ask him . . . ask him what Lamont likes to eat for breakfast." Honestly.

"Becca, I'm baby-sitting for Waldo, not for Lamont." I heaved a big sigh. "Look. Now you've got me all confused. I mean, I'm babysitting for Derek. Anyway, I thought you said you didn't have a crush on Lamont." "I don't!" Becca said hotly. "I'm just curious, that's all." "Sounds like a pretty serious crush to me," I said.

Becca whirled around in a huff and stomped off to her room. I grabbed my sweater and was out the door.

Well, Becca may have been a bit over the edge about Lamont, but to tell you the truth, I was not much calmer about Derek. As I walked down the street to the Masterses' house, my heart started racing. I was going to meet a real TV star! Every week people all over the country watched P.S. 162 and every week they laughed at Waldo and his silly science. Hmm. It suddenly occurred to me that maybe Derek would be able to help me with my science homework. (I had been having a little bit of trouble with it lately.) At any rate, this would be a good opportunity to get his autograph. If I wanted to be clever, I could even get him to autograph my science book! I stood at the front door of the Masterses' and brought my finger up to the doorbell. I took a deep breath and swallowed hard. This was as bad as an audition. I certainly had as many butterflies in my stomach.

"Go on," I said to myself. Sometimes I have to take myself in hand and tell myself what to do. "Just go ahead. Ring that bell." B-R-R-R-R-I-M-I-N-G/ I jumped at the sound of the bell. The door opened and a nice-looking woman stood there smiling. Behind her were two boys.

I looked past them into the house. I was looking for Derek, for a boy wearing thick, horn-rimmed glasses.

"Hello," the woman said cheerfully. She extended her hand to shake mine. "You must be Jessi. I'm Mrs. Masters, and, come here, boys." She beckoned to the two children behind her. "This is Todd," she said, putting her hand on the little one's shoulder. "And this is Derek." "Derek?" I don't think I hid my surprise. The boy she introduced as Derek was just a regular-looking kid. Where were the glasses? And what about his spiky hair?