Showtime. Jean Ure

      Almost before we knew it, Outreach Day was upon us. I couldn’t believe how quickly the weeks had passed! They seemed to have whizzed by. Nico and I had been rehearsing every possible moment that we could, either with Mr Leonardo or by ourselves. We were both determined to live up to our reputation of being quick studies, plus we really did want to demonstrate how exciting ballet could be. I kept thinking of Chloe’s friend Dominic who had complained that it was “all pink and pretty”. Nobody, but nobody, could say that about our Fandango! I was so glad, now, that that was what Mr Leonardo had picked me for, rather than a Little Swan. The Little Swans were cute, all dancing together on pointe, with linked arms, their heads bobbing up and down, but I could see that maybe, for the boys, it wouldn’t be macho enough. Not if they were into football, which most boys seem to be.

      We all assembled in Studio One: sixteen of us dancers and twenty Year Eight pupils from the local school, mostly girls, though at a quick glance I counted seven boys among them. It was a comfort to know that they’d all volunteered and hadn’t been forced into coming, so hopefully that meant they would be enthusiastic.

      First off we did half an hour of class, as planned. Mr Leonardo, who was the teacher taking us, asked if any of our visitors felt like having a turn at the barre. Two of the girls volunteered. One of them had obviously had a few ballet lessons and was anxious to show what she could do. The other one overbalanced attempting a plié and collapsed into embarrassed giggles. I thought it was quite brave of her to have tried. Pliés may look simple but they’re a bit more than an ordinary knees-bend. As she had discovered!

      When we’d demonstrated what we did in class – every single day of our working lives, as Mr Leonardo impressed upon everyone – we prepared for our individual pieces. The Little Swans, the Trepak, the Czardas from Coppelia