by Ann Bryant
“Is Cara still ill?” someone asked at the start of the next rehearsal.
“Yes,” said Miss Pritchard in a bit of a snap. “I’ve told you Cara won’t be able to be in the play. Where’s Georgie Henderson?”
I stiffened.
Then she spotted me. “Come here a moment, Georgie.” Quite a few others came closer to hear what she was going to say but she shooed them away. “Off you go. I want a word with Georgie.”
Everyone scuttled away. Miss Pritchard narrowed her eyes as though she was a detective and had almost solved a murder but was just trying to find that last piece of the puzzle.
“I saw you on the stage in the theatre the other day,” she began, looking very serious.
My heart hammered as I remembered Mia watching me from the fifth row. “Sorry, Miss Pritchard. I didn’t realize I wasn’t allowed—”
She shook her head and flapped her hand impatiently. “No…I… The point is I heard you saying some of Amy’s lines…”
I gulped and waited.
“How much of the part have you actually learned?”
“All of it.”
She took a step backwards. “All of it. Are you sure?”
Now I knew what people meant when they talked about walking on eggshells. Something told me I must be very, very careful. If only I had Naomi whispering the right answers into my ear. But actually I was in a state of shock now, and speaking was out of the question, so I just made a noise instead.
Miss Pritchard’s eyes were like slits. “Is that a yes?”
“Mmm.”
“So you’re telling me you’ve learned all of Amy’s lines?”
“Mmm.”
“I’d like to hear you saying a few more. Is that all right?” She wasn’t exactly smiling at me, but she was definitely giving me an encouraging look. All the same, I couldn’t make any words come out.
“Mmm.”
“Are you all right, Georgie? Please don’t tell me you’ve lost your voice too?”
“No.” I cleared my throat. “I’m okay…”
“Good. Choose any speech you want and go onto the stage.”
“What about…?” I was looking round for Alice. It felt a bit embarrassing suddenly launching into one of her speeches right in front of her.
“I’ve had a word with Alice. She knows you’re having a bash.” Miss Pritchard clapped her hands. “Right, girls, can we have a bit of hush? I’ve asked Georgie to try one of Amy’s speeches.”
And the next minute I was in the middle of the stage wishing I could just have a cue from someone and then I’d feel more natural about acting with everyone staring at me and probably wondering what on earth was going on.
“I’ll do the bit when Beth is dying and Amy’s at her bedside.” I glanced at Savannah, who was playing the part of Beth, to see if she might offer to lie down and pretend to be ill like she did in that scene, but she just stood there looking as puzzled as everyone else.
“Savannah, go and lie on the couch, please,” said Miss Pritchard. So Savannah did as she was told, and closed her eyes and I realized immediately that I’d made a big mistake choosing this bit because it was the most emotional part of the play and although I could make tears come when I practised on my own, I was far too nervous for that to happen right now. In fact I wasn’t sure that I could do the speech at all. But everyone was waiting. I had to get on with it.
I stared at Savannah’s still face and tried with all my imagination to turn it into Beth’s face, but it wasn’t working, so then I tried to imagine it was Mia. Mia dying? That would be unbearable. I clung to that awful thought and began the speech. After only a few seconds there were tears in my eyes, blurring my vision and making my voice shaky. Then Savannah suddenly opened her own eyes and I saw that she was nearly crying too, and in that split second I stopped thinking about Mia and all I could see was Beth, overcome with emotion because she knew she was seeing her sister for the last time. I leaned over and put my face next to hers for a second like it said in the script, and Savannah said her line in a really thin sad voice, just as Beth would have done and then a few of my tears brimmed over and landed on her sweatshirt, and a moment later I had to stop because everyone was clapping and whooping like mad.
Savannah shot up and gave me a big bear hug. “That was so cool, Georgie. You made me act out of my skin!”
And when I looked at Miss Pritchard I saw that she was actually wiping the corner of her eye with her finger, and her face didn’t look at all in control like it normally does. Then Alice came leaping over to me and I got another hug. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I hated trying to be Amy. I’ll be able to go back to Hannah now!” And everyone laughed and started hugging Alice.
The clapping was the best sound in the world until Miss Pritchard spoke, and then that was the best sound in the world. “Well, folks, I think we’ve got a new Amy!”
Major tingles were breaking out all over me but I just needed to double-check something. “So I’m not the understudy. I really am going to actually act Amy in the play?”
Miss Pritchard spoke quietly but her eyes were dancing. “You certainly are!”
“Yesssss!” I punched the air about ten times and jumped up and down and felt like doing handsprings all the way across the stage, except that if I tried even a single one I’d collapse and probably break a leg. And then I laughed my head off because it suddenly seemed amazingly funny to think of the words “break a leg”, as that’s what people always say to actors to wish them luck on the first night.
“Okay, let’s get down to business!” said Miss Pritchard.
And the next hour was total magic.
For three days I didn’t come down off cloud nine. Mia and I kept high-fiving each other and screeching “Georgie is Amy!” at the tops of our voices. Miss Carol and Miss Fosbrook both hugged me and said they were delighted. Matron told me that when she’d first heard I was going to audition she didn’t think I had a ghost of a chance, but she was really pleased I’d managed to pull it off. I e-mailed Mum with the brilliant news about getting a part and she phoned me and said it was absolutely wonderful and she was dying to see the performance, and all my friends agreed that it was the most exciting thing ever. I just felt one little tug of sadness that Dad wouldn’t be able to see me because of his business trip. If only we’d known how everything was going to turn out.
“Just think, only five days till the first performance!” said Jess. “And then three lovely weeks of Christmas holiday!”
Another little dark cloud drifted across my sunny skies at the thought of the holidays, because of course holidays meant end-of-term report. I’d really tried hard to concentrate in lessons but it didn’t seem to have done much good, so I knew I’d be in for a rocket when I got home, especially as Dad wouldn’t have even seen me acting, which might have softened the blow of the bad marks a bit. But I shook that annoying black cloud out of my glowing picture and tuned into all the arrangements that my friends were making to see each other. Grace was the only one who wouldn’t get to see any of the rest of us over the holidays because she was going back to Thailand to be with her family. She said she’d try to arrange for Jess to stay with her in the next holidays at Easter though, which made Jess very excited. And I was going to Mia’s for a few days near the end of the holidays, which I was looking forward to like mad.
Having my costume fitting was brilliant fun. The dress that Cara had been going to wear was a bit tight, so another one had been made quickly and Katy had designed and helped to make it, and it fitted me perfectly! I never ever thought I’d enjoy wearing a mauve dress that went in at the waist and then flared out down to the ground, and had a little lace collar and puffed sleeves, but I absolutely loved it. Admiring myself in the mirror, I reminded myself of my little sister, who loves dressing up as much as I used to. The dress got me totally into the character of Amy and made me feel as though I was living in the nineteenth century. In fact, putting my school uniform back on afterwards felt a bit depressing.
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br /> Another exciting moment was the first time we had a rehearsal with the four singing narrators and the band, which consisted of Mrs. Harrison on piano and five other girls playing string and wind instruments. The narrators simply walked on at the end of various scenes, and sang songs which linked up the events of the play, because if we’d been acting every single thing that happened in Little Women the play would go on for ever. Sometimes the narrators sang solos and sometimes duets and sometimes all four of them sang together. Their voices were absolutely beautiful and they made the play even more moving than it already was. In fact I simply had to give a demonstration to my friends one evening after prep. They sat on Grace’s bed while I stood on the rug and belted out the tunes, but I couldn’t remember half the words so I just sang “la la la” at the top of my voice.
Miss Carol came in right in the middle to tell us to get ready for bed, and after the others had gone off to the bathroom she looked as though she was about to say something to me. In fact she actually opened her mouth to speak, but then seemed to change her mind, and patted me on the back instead. I thought she was going to bustle me along because I was taking ages to get my washbag, but instead she just gave me this really odd smile, kind of pitying.
I didn’t think anything of it at the time, but later when I was lying in bed, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I told myself it was probably nothing, but all the same it took me ages to get to sleep that night.
Chapter Nine
The following day Miss Pritchard came to look for me as I was finishing my lunch. There was something about the serious look on her face that made me shiver with nervousness. She said she wanted a little chat and my mind flashed straight back to that smile Miss Carol had given me. She’d felt sorry for me at that moment and now I was positive I knew why. I could just feel it in my bones. We went to the Deputy Head’s office because Miss Pritchard thought that would be quieter than the dining hall. She wasn’t smiling but she definitely wasn’t cross. My mouth felt completely dry and my chest was tight. Before she uttered a single word I knew what she was going to say.
“Georgie, we’ve got a difficult situation, I’m afraid.”
“Cara’s better, isn’t she?” I blurted out.
“Yes, she is. She’s recovered much faster than Matron thought she would. And I’ve had to make a decision about what to do.” She was speaking quickly as though she suddenly wanted to get it over with. I held my breath. “I think the best and fairest plan is for the two of you to share the role of Amy.”
I nodded slowly, letting out my breath and feeling a massive relief that I wasn’t going to lose the role of Amy after all. Then I started trying to work out whether Cara and I would actually have to talk to each other.
“Cara’s parents have been contacted and fortunately they’re very happy to attend the Friday evening performance and take Cara back home for the holidays immediately after the show. That’s what lots of parents of students who aren’t in the play are doing. And we don’t need to contact your parents because I understand they’re coming on the Saturday.”
“It’s just Mum,” I said a bit bleakly. “Dad can’t come.”
“But you’ve got your grandmother, and is it your little sister…?”
I nodded. “Roxanne.”
“I’m sure she’ll enjoy it. How old is she?”
“Six.” I smiled to myself at the thought of Roxanne watching Castles in the Air. She wouldn’t understand most of it, but I knew she’d still love it. Then my brain started fast-forwarding. “What’s going to happen at…”
Miss Pritchard must have been reading my mind. “I think Cara needs to play Amy at the next rehearsal because it’s been a while since she’s done it. I’m sure you agree that makes sense?”
I nodded and pictured myself sitting in the front row. I wasn’t looking forward to it one little bit, especially as Cara probably hated me more than ever, now I’d done the very thing she’d said would never ever happen – I’d taken over her role.
I was thinking about Mia as I went into the theatre after school, because this was the day she was doing her piano exam. I’d already wished her good luck about a million times but earlier we’d frantically wished each other good luck. I looked at my watch and realized that she might even be playing her scales at that very moment so I closed my eyes and sent her my best vibes, then sat down in the front row, which felt weird. My heart started beating faster when I heard Cara’s voice, but I deliberately didn’t look over towards the stage where I knew she’d be standing in the centre of a big group of people.
“The doctor said it was amazing how quickly I recovered. Apparently laryngitis can affect your voice for weeks.”
Miss Pritchard raised her hands for silence and quickly told everyone that it was lovely to have Cara back. “Cara and Georgie are sharing the role of Amy now, with Cara doing the Friday night performance and Georgie, the Saturday,” she explained in her bright voice. I glanced over at Cara but she wasn’t looking at me. She had her eyes on some distant spot in the auditorium. “Cara will take the part in the technical rehearsal on Thursday, when we’ll have all the lights and amplification, and Georgie will take the part for the dress rehearsal on Friday afternoon.” She paused and looked round. “The thing I want everyone to remember is that no two actors ever interpret a role in quite the same way, and the same is true of Cara and Georgie. They’re both giving their own individual interpretation, and both of them are very good indeed.” She paused again as if to let those words of hers sink in, then she suddenly turned brisk. “Right, let’s get started.”
It felt weird sitting alone in the front row watching everyone acting after I’d been so involved only the day before. All the actors had to stay backstage for the whole rehearsal because Miss Pritchard wanted the play to be precisely how it would be in the actual performances. Cara stumbled a few times, which wasn’t any wonder when she’d not done it for ages, but I saw Savannah and Camilla rolling their eyes at one another when they probably thought no one was looking. They didn’t seem to be putting as much as usual into their performances, and twice Miss Pritchard told them firmly to try to keep up their energy. Rebecca was fine all through the first act, but then Cara seemed to be really struggling to act like she used to in the second act, and that somehow affected Rebecca because she kept on forgetting her lines and seemed really nervous. So Miss Pritchard had to have a go at three of the four main people.
“I know this has been a long term,” she said in her I’m-trying-to-be-patient voice, “and you’ve worked incredibly hard to achieve all you’ve achieved with this play, but we’re nearly there now so try to remember it’s a showcase for the school and I’m not accepting anything less than your best performances on Friday and Saturday. Rebecca, there’s no need to be nervous. Just relax, because you’re absolutely fine. Maybe have a quick go over your lines tonight.”
Camilla suddenly came forward and said, “Yes but—” then stopped abruptly, as if she’d changed her mind.
“But what?” asked Miss Pritchard, not unkindly.
“It’s okay.”
I saw Cara sucking her lips in, and noticed how pale her face was at that moment. Quite a few people exchanged looks though nobody spoke, but I wasn’t sure what that was all about. Then Miss Pritchard told everyone to get a good night’s sleep and people started drifting out quietly.
I went straight to find Mia because I was dying to find out how she’d got on. She’d been so nervous all through the day and I was really hoping she’d managed to shake it off for her actual exam.
It was when I was only about ten metres away from Hazeldean that someone called out my name and I turned round to see Cara, which gave me a big shock I can tell you. I organized my face so it was set in my hardest expression, because she was bound to say something nasty. Then I waited for her to get right up to me, because no way was I going to take a single step towards her. But as she got closer I realized she looked a bit pale.
“I wanted to ask you so
mething,” she said quietly.
It was confusing me that she wasn’t being mean. I didn’t know how to react. “Wh…what?”
A part of me wondered whether this was all a very clever trick, and any minute now her friends might jump out from behind a tree and start sneering and saying cruel things about how I thought I’d got the part of Amy but now that wasn’t quite true after all.
She looked down, then back up again. “I was wondering…whether…you’d like to act in both performances?”
I couldn’t speak I was so gobsmacked. The great Cara Ravenscroft was actually offering me the chance to have the role of Amy all to myself. No. It had to be a joke. I stared at her, waiting for her mask to drop.
“Yeah right.”
“No, I mean it.” Her face looked paler than ever and her eyes were full of big worry. If this was an act then she was the best actress I’d ever come across.
I tried to sound businesslike. “Has your laryngitis come back?”
She shook her head. “It’s just that…the others don’t seem to be…acting so well now…” She looked as though she was going to cry and I suddenly knew for certain that this wasn’t an act.
“I think it’s like Miss Pritchard said…everyone’s really tired…” I said carefully.
“No, it’s not that. I saw Camilla and Savannah exchange a look and I was sure it was because they thought I wasn’t as good as I used to be, and that made me even worse, and then I heard Camilla whispering to Savannah when we were all leaving the theatre. She was trying to persuade Savannah to say something to Miss Pritchard.”
“Well that doesn’t prove anything.” I didn’t really believe what I was saying, but Cara was in a terrible state and I felt genuinely sorry for her.
“The thing is, Georgie, Savannah did go and talk to Miss Pritchard but I couldn’t hear what she said because she had her back to me and she was talking really quietly, but I heard Miss Pritchard’s reply…”
I bit my lip.
“She said, ‘No, I’m sorry, Savannah, that would be completely unfair. You were perfectly happy with Cara before she was ill, so you just need to be professional about this and adapt to whichever one of them is playing the role.’” Cara’s eyes filled with tears. “So you see, they really prefer it when you’re playing Amy, and I don’t want the play to be rubbish or everyone’ll say it’s my fault.”