Centre Stage: A Novel

out!

Chapter Seven
    ‘Here we are,’ Mum said the next day, parking the car outside an old Victorian house. There was a noticeboard on its wrought-iron gates which said, Clawson Academy of Performing Arts .
    I fumbled with my seat belt, my heart turning somersaults.
    ‘So, are you excited?’ Mum asked
    Excited? I was so excited I could hardly breathe. I nodded. ‘Very!’
    Mum and I went into the school. There was a signpost with a big arrow which said, Lion, Witch and Wardrobe rehearsals — Bernhardt Theatre .
    We followed the arrow down a corridor and out into a courtyard. On the opposite side of the courtyard was a modern black-and-white building with the words Bernhardt Theatre in big letters over the doors.
    ‘That looks like the place,’ Mum said.
    We went over to the theatre. Inside there was a small foyer and then double doors which opened into a room about the size of our school hall. There were lots of people milling around. There wasn’t a stage but at the side of the room platforms were stacked. The ceiling was high and criss-crossed with metal lighting bars and in the far corner of the room there was a scaffolding tower.
    ‘Hello, it’s Sophie Tennison, isn’t it?’
    Looking round, I recognized Velda. ‘Hi,’ I said, nodding.
    Velda smiled at Mum. ‘You can leave Sophie now if you want. She’ll be ready to be collected at four.’
    Mum looked at me. ‘Is that OK?’
    I nodded. There were loads of other people my age or a bit older there, and none of them had their parents with them. ‘Yeah, I’ll see you later, Mum.’
    Mum said goodbye and left.
    ‘We’ll be starting in about five minutes,’ Velda told me. ‘Help yourself to a drink and biscuit.’ She pointed out a table with big jugs of orange juice on.
    I was just about to head over when I heard someone call my name. I looked round. Justine was hurrying towards me.
    ‘Did you get the part of Lucy?’ Justine demanded.
    I nodded.
    ‘So did I!’ Justine beamed.
    ‘Oh, brilliant!’ I gasped. ‘Well done.’ Knowing I was Lucy too, I could feel genuinely pleased for her.
    ‘Were you going to get a drink?’ Justine asked.
    I nodded.
    ‘Let’s go together,’ Justine said. We set off towards the drinks table. It was weird how much things had changed since primary school. We had not got on at all then but now, well, now we seemed to be almost friends.
    ‘So, do you like our theatre?’ she asked.
    I nodded. ‘It’s cool.’
    ‘The stage is moveable so we can have it wherever we want,’ she told me. ‘Those doors through there lead to the dressing rooms. Upstairs there’s a smaller studio theatre and also the dance studios. I’ll show you around later.’
    It was strange having Justine know so much and me know so little. As we poured ourselves drinks, I wondered if loads of her friends from school were going to be in the cast. ‘Do you know many people who are in the play?’ I asked curiously.
    She shook her head. ‘Not really. From Year Seven there’s just me and two other girls. Everyone else is in Years Eight, Nine or Ten, and I only know them by sight.’
    Just then someone tapped me on the shoulder. I swung round. A girl who looked about fourteen was standing behind me. She was skinny with dark auburn hair tied in two low bunches. ‘Excuse me, but are you Sophie Tennison?’
    I nodded.
    The girl smiled. ‘Velda told me to come over. I’m Colette Masters. We’re in the same team. I’m playing Susan — Lucy’s older sister.’
    For a moment I hadn’t a clue what Colette was going on about but then my brain clicked into gear. Of course. There were going to be two teams of children. I was Lucy in one team and Justine was Lucy in the other.
    ‘Do you want to come and meet the boys who are playing Peter and Edmund in our team?’ Colette went on.
    ‘OK,’ I said eagerly. I looked at Justine.
    ‘I suppose I should go and meet my team too,’ she said. ‘See you later, Sophie.’
    Colette led me to where two boys were standing. One was tall with blond hair. He looked sporty — like he played rugby or something. The other was smaller with short dark hair and a nice smile. They both looked about the same age as Colette.
    ‘This is Sophie,’ Colette announced.
    The tall boy turned out to be called Jack; he was playing Peter — the older brother. The other boy was called Mark; he was playing Edmund — the younger brother. He and Colette were at school at Clawson’s. Jack was at a private school but