Fabulous Five 010 - Playing the Part

by Betsy Haynes

  "Okay, everyone," Mr. Levine announced. "Tryouts are on Friday after school. Those who are chosen can keep their scripts to practice with. Those who aren't chosen can return the scripts to me later. Lots of luck to all of you."

  Beth squeezed the script tightly to her body as she left the auditorium. This was her first junior high script, and it seemed so grown-up. For the first time in her life, she felt as if she were really on her way to becoming an actress.

  That evening, after Beth had helped clean up the dinner dishes, she was on her way to her room to study when the phone rang just as she was passing it.

  She grabbed it at the same instant that Alicia came running in and Brittany appeared in the other doorway with an it's-obviously-for-me look.

  "Beth?" It was Christie.

  "Oh, hi, Christie," Beth answered. She shrugged at Brittany and gave her sister a fake smile.

  Christie talked about school for a moment, but Beth could tell that that wasn't what was on her mind.

  Finally Christie said, "Um, Beth. Do you remember when we were talking, and you said that you didn't care who Keith dated?"

  "Yes," said Beth, but little tingles of apprehension were racing up her spine.

  "Um, well, I was just wondering . . ."

  "Wondering what?" asked Beth. She heard Christie take a deep breath.

  "Well, I saw Keith right after school. You know, when you were at the meeting for the play. And he sort of asked me to go to Bumpers with him. I was shocked that he asked, and naturally I didn't want to butt into your romance, so I said no. But I was wondering if you really meant what you said about not caring if Keith dated other girls." Her voice trailed off to just above a whisper.

  Beth's mouth dropped open. Keith had asked Christie to go to Bumpers. Bumpers was the fast-food restaurant where everyone hung out after school. How could he do a thing like that? Was he trying to show her that he could do without her? She had just been talking big the other day and had definitely expected to make up with him, but if he felt that way, she would just show him.

  "You should have said yes," she said firmly. "It wouldn't make the slightest bit of difference to me." She flipped her hand casually, as if Christie could see it over the phone. "Just like you, Christie, now and then I need a little space. I've got so much going on that I want to be involved in. Maybe it's time we didn't go steady anymore."

  "If you say so," said Christie.

  Beth smiled to herself after they had hung up. Despite what Christie had told her, Beth didn't think for one minute that Keith would really go out with someone else, especially not with one of Beth's best friends. He was just trying to make her angry because she wouldn't spend as much time with him as he wanted her to.

  Back in her room, Beth grabbed the script and flipped through the pages. Then she tossed it onto the bed and opened her social studies book instead.

  She had read only two paragraphs when her thoughts drifted back to Keith and Christie. What Christie had said about Keith's asking her to go to Bumpers was really bugging her.

  She had known that Keith was upset at her for being so busy, but she couldn't believe he'd ask Christie to go to Bumpers with him. How could he do that to her? Was he really that mad at her? Didn't he know how important the play was to her? Maybe if she called him and talked to him again, he would understand.

  She got out of her chair and took two steps toward the door. No, she thought, I can't do that. I have pride. Keith was the one who didn't understand her. It was up to him to call. In fact, he would probably call her this very evening. When he did, she would just pretend there was nothing wrong.

  She walked back to her desk and sat down. A second later she leapt up again and opened the door. Was that the telephone ringing? She could hear Brittany talking to someone on the phone downstairs. She waited a minute to see if Brittany would call her, but the conversation continued, and she knew it was one of Brittany's friends. She left the door open a crack so she could hear if the phone rang again.

  Beth walked over to the bed and picked up the play script. She was dying to start practicing, but first she had to study for her social studies test.

  For the next fifteen minutes Beth tried to study, but instead she could only stare into space. If Keith asks Christie to go to Bumpers with him again, would Christie accept? she wondered. I'll die if they go out and everyone sees them together.

  What if Keith asked Christie to go to the movies with him on Friday night? Would she go?

  No! Beth thought emphatically. Christie was one of her best friends. She wouldn't go on a date with Keith, she thought smugly. Best friends didn't date each other's boyfriends, and Christie and Beth had been best friends for a long time. Besides, Keith would get over his anger soon.

  But with a sinking feeling Beth remembered what she had told Christie and everyone else in The Fabulous Five: She didn't care about Keith; she was thinking about breaking up anyway. Why did I say such a stupid thing? she thought. I didn't mean that seriously. Christie ought to know that. She ought to understand that I was just talking big again.

  Beth sighed. Her big mouth was always getting her into trouble. One of the worst times had been when she had told The Fantastic Foursome that she was going to have a party that was bigger and better than the one Laura McCall was having. Then she had gotten grounded and couldn't have any kind of party, even a teensy one. Then she had told everyone that Jana was related to Trevor Morgan, the lead singer with the rock group Brain Damage. Christie should know by now that Beth was always saying things that she didn't mean.

  Beth glanced over again at the script lying in the middle of her bed. As long as she was having difficulty reading her social studies book, she would make a deal with herself. She would read a little bit of the script, and then she would come back to her social studies until she was sure she knew enough to make an A on the test.

  That's fair, she thought happily. She picked up the script and flopped on the bed and began thumbing through the pages, counting the lines for Julie's part. Gosh, there are a lot of words, she thought, and started reading out loud.

  "Oh, Ronnie, I do so want to date you, but you know how my parents feel."

  Beth liked the sound of her voice, but it just wasn't quite right. She tried speaking the part again, this time louder and with more power. That's better, she thought excitedly, but I can do it even better.

  Beth went to her bookcase and picked out one of her books on acting and reread the parts she had underlined. Calm yourself by warming up. . . . Try to show that extra spark. . . . Find the spotlight and keep your head up and your face forward. . . . Speak loudly and slowly.

  Beth giggled at the suggestion below the last one. It said you should try reading your part to someone else through a door. The idea was to help you to speak your lines loudly and clearly enough to be heard in the last row. Maybe she ought to try reading to her brother Brian through his door. If he could hear her with his stereo turned up, anyone in the auditorium should be able to hear her without a microphone.

  Concentrate on your lines. Try to become the person you are portraying.

  Beth thought about that for a moment. It made sense. If you were going to act as if you were someone else, you should really try to forget yourself and be that person. If you tried hard enough, and concentrated, you could be anyone you wanted to be. I can make people think I'm happy when I'm not or mad when I'm happy, if I really want to, she thought. I can hide my real feelings and play whatever part I choose. I'm not just an actress, I'm a good one!

  "Okay," she said out loud. "Just call me Julie because that's who I am."

  She bent over and touched her toes ten times and did some stretches and deep-breathing exercises. Then she opened her closet door so she could see herself in the full-length mirror and tried reading the part again. This time, the words rolled off her lips, and she made grand gestures at the mirror with her hands as if she were speaking to someone. Beth smiled at her reflection, bowed, and pretended that she could hear the aud
ience applauding.

  Then a thought came to her, and she went into her closet. The music from Brian's stereo was vibrating the walls, even though it was supposed to be turned down so that everybody else could do their homework. The lid of the trunk where she kept her acting things screeched as Beth opened it.

  First she pulled out Brian's gorilla costume and put it on the floor. Then came the Oriental fans, wigs, and fake mustaches. Finally, she found the makeup kit and took it back to her desk.

  Spreading the contents out on top of her books, Beth grabbed a bottle of foundation and opened it. After she'd spread a layer over her face, she dusted powder over it. Then she contoured her face with a dark blush and carefully edged her eyes with liner. Next she put on a bright red lipstick and darkened her eyebrows with a pencil.

  My hair, she thought, running her fingers through it. She dug her brush out of her purse and tried to comb her short, spiky hair into different styles. Oh, well, she said to herself, there's not much I can do with it. Finally she patted it into place.

  She spun in front of the mirror and looked at herself from all sides. She almost looked the part already.

  Beth picked up the script and started reading again, this time from the very first line. She concentrated and really tried to feel like Julie.

  Soon the image in the mirror that had looked like Beth Barry faded, and she saw Julie standing in front of her. Her voice got more dramatic and her movements more eloquent. Time passed without her realizing it as she read through the whole play.

  When Beth was finished, she felt totally exhausted. She lay down on her bed with the script clutched to her chest and thought about what it would be like to be a big star. With visions of herself as the lead in a Broadway play, taking bows as the audience applauded wildly, she finally drifted off to sleep.

  CHAPTER 4

  Beth woke with a start. The lamp next to her bed was still on, and sunlight was streaming into her room. The social studies book was lying unopened on her desk.

  "Oh, my gosh, the test!" she said, jumping out of bed.

  She ran to the closet mirror and stared in horror at her face. The makeup was all smudged and she looked like some kind of monster. She grabbed a handful of tissues and scrubbed her face until it was sore and red but finally clean.

  Picking up her social studies book, she headed for the bathroom. When she got there, the door was closed.

  "Hurry up and let someone else use the bathroom!" she called, knocking sharply on the door.

  "You can wait your turn!" Brittany's voice came from inside.

  Beth bounced up and down, anxiously waiting to get in. She flipped her book open and skimmed the pages.

  "Can I go in next, Bethy?" asked Alicia, coming out of her room and walking with her legs crossed. "I've got to go to the bathroom."

  Beth rolled her eyes to the ceiling and knocked on the door again. "Brittany, will you hurry? We've got an emergency out here. Alicia has to go to the bathroom."

  Mumbled words that Beth couldn't understand came from inside.

  Alicia jumped up and down, and Beth began to worry that she really wouldn't be able to wait.

  "BRITTANY!" she yelled, knocking on the door harder.

  The door popped open and Brittany emerged, throwing a towel over her shoulder as Alicia slipped past her.

  "All right, all ready!" said Brittany. "I'll be glad when I go to college and don't have to share the bathroom with so many people."

  "College has thousands of people," retorted Beth.

  "But I won't be sharing a bathroom with all of them," Brittany hurled back over her shoulder.

  She's got a point, thought Beth, opening her book again.

  She felt a paw hitting the back of her leg, and turned to see Agatha smiling up at her. "You will have to wait your turn," she told the dog. Agatha's smile seemed to grow at the attention.

  Finally Beth heard the toilet flush, and Alicia came out. She yelled, "Thanks, Bethy!" as she ran back to her room.

  Inside the bathroom, Beth propped her book against the mirror and began reading and brushing her teeth.

  "Excuse me," Beth said to Bill Soliday as she bumped into him with her tray coming out of the cafeteria line. She saw Melanie, Jana, Christie, and Katie at The Fabulous Five's regular table.

  "Hi, everybody," she said as she joined them. She gave Christie an extra big smile. She didn't want Christie to think she was hurt or worried over Keith's asking her to go to Bumpers. Maybe Keith would get over being mad and wouldn't ask Christie to go to Bumpers again anyway.

  "How's practice going for the tryouts?" asked Katie.

  "A lot better than studying for my social studies test," answered Beth. "I didn't do very well at all. I read the assignment, but I forgot everything when I got in class."

  "Have you thought about practicing your part onstage?" asked Christie. "It sure helped me before we had the tryout for the Super Quiz team. I didn't have to worry about where to be or what to do and could concentrate on the questions."

  "That's a great idea!" said Beth gratefully. "I hadn't thought about that. I'll have to do it."

  "Everyone's going to the football game Saturday, right?" asked Melanie. They all said yes.

  "Randy said that Keith has a chance to be first in the league in yards gained," said Jana. "If he gets enough yards in Saturday's game, he'll go ahead of Mike Saharis from Georgetown Junior High."

  "That's what Keith told me, too," said Christie.

  "Oh, really?" said Beth. She felt her face flush and hoped Christie didn't notice.

  "You didn't know that?" asked Melanie. "And he's your boyfriend."

  "Uh, sure I knew that," said Beth, bluffing. "I, uh, just forgot for a minute. We haven't seen each other much lately, and I've got so much on my mind."

  Beth tried to remember if Keith had told her about it, and she had forgotten. Was it possible that he would have said something as important as that to Christie and not told her? Don't be ridiculous, she thought angrily. Keith's my boyfriend. But a little voice in her head reminded her that she had said she wanted to break up with him. But she hadn't said positively.

  It was hard for Beth to pay attention to what was going on during her afternoon classes. Her mind kept turning to Keith. She hadn't seen him all morning. Was he avoiding her? If he was mad at her, should she be the one to try and make up? That didn't seem fair because she really hadn't done anything wrong. She was just busy, that's all.

  She had been on the cheerleading squad since the beginning of the school year, and he knew how much she wanted to be an actress. It was just going to take more of her time than she had expected, at least for now. She and Keith still had the weekends to date.

  Did Keith think that Christie was prettier than she was? The idea shocked Beth. She hadn't thought about that before. Maybe Keith had been looking for an excuse to break up with her so that he could ask Christie for a date all along.

  Beth shook her head. I'm starting to imagine things, she thought. Keith and I are just having a little argument. We've argued before, but we've never broken up.

  What I have to do is take the positive approach. If I act as if nothing is wrong, everything will be all right. She straightened her back and sat up straight. It's just like playing a part in a play.

  Beth pushed open the auditorium doors before cheerleading practice and walked down the aisle. She tossed her books into one of the front-row seats, and then, with her script in hand, she walked up the stairs onto the stage.

  She was glad that Christie had suggested that she read her lines in the auditorium. It would seem much more real and make the tryouts easier. That's what good friends are for, she thought. They think about each other and share good ideas.

  The auditorium was at least twice the size of the one at Mark Twain Elementary. Moving to the front center of the stage, she looked out over the rows of empty seats. It was awesome standing there imagining them filled with students and parents.

  She took several deep breaths and pu
lled herself up to her full height. Arching her eyebrows, she tried to look the way she imagined a great actress would before an admiring audience.

  Then, in her imagination, the applause started. It grew and grew until it was a roar, and she could see people standing and yelling her name. An elegant man, whose face she couldn't quite see, was whistling his approval. She knew it was Mr. Stapleton, Mr. Levine's friend, the casting director from New York.

  Clutching her script tightly to her chest, Beth looked out over the happy faces and smiled back her appreciation.

  She opened the script and began to read the part of Julie.

  CHAPTER 5

  Beth and Melanie ran onto the football field to where the other cheerleaders were forming a circle around Miss Wolfe. The teacher was standing with her clipboard in hand, waiting to call roll.

  Kaci Davis, who was the captain of the cheerleading squad, was standing with her hands on her hips, looking as confident as always. Taffy Sinclair stood to one side by herself, and Laura McCall was talking to Tammy Lucero, the gossip of The Fantastic Foursome.

  "I see who you're looking at," said Melanie. "All of your competition is right here on this very field. Wouldn't it be something if they all sprained their ankles in cheerleading practice and couldn't go out for the play?"

  Beth smiled back. "That's not too likely. You know, I think I can act better than Laura and Kaci, but how do I beat out Taffy? She's had so much experience, and she's had a lot more acting lessons than I have. She's even been on the television soap opera Interns and Lovers."

  "I think they should declare the school play an amateur sport and not let professionals like Taffy try out," said Melanie.

  "I'm sure one of the reasons she's interested is because Mr. Levine's friend, the casting director, will be here. She probably thinks there's a chance he'll offer her a big part in a Broadway play."

  Beth looked at Taffy and sighed to herself. Laura and Kaci would be tough enough to beat, but did she even have a chance against Taffy?