Class hadn't started yet, and Maka Albarn was in the dance company's dressing room with two of her classmates, Liz Thompson and Tsubaki Nakatsukasa.
The girl's dressing room looked the same as it did every year. The walls were painted lavender with pink benches in the center of the room. One side of the room had a huge mirror, and the opposite a row of lime green chairs. The lockers covered about half of the wall, and each locker was decorated differently. The floor was waxed so much that glitter was permanently stuck in it and a set of pointe shoes were always left in the corner by some careless dancer. The room looked like something off a movie set.
At the dance studio, each person's personality could easily be told from their lockers. Liz's locker almost matched about half of everyone else's; it was painted a bright pink color and had no decorations other than a whiteboard, for others to leave messages 's locker was painted a pastel green color with different colored flowers painted over all over it; Maka's locker was a plain red color with stickers placed all over it.
"Hey Liz, can I borrow a bobby pin?" the petite dancer asked.
"Sure." Liz opened her locker in the dressing room and grabbed a handful of bobby pins, handing them to the girl.
"Thanks, I owe you big time."
"Oh, it's not a problem at all."
"Hey Tsu, when does class start?" the eldest Thompson sister asked.
"Uhh," she muttered as she checked the time on her phone. "About ten minutes. Where's your sister?''
"Dang it, she ran off again. Sorry Maka, Sorry Tsu. See you in class," the brunette muttered before rushing out of the dressing room with hair ties and bobby pins in her mouth.
"We should probably get to class soon," Maka said as she slid the last bobby pin in her hair. Tsu nodded and the two girls put their things away in their lockers before walking to class together.
The class was fairly large, but there weren't a lot of guys in the class. The teacher liked to do dances with partners, and some of the girls had to share partners. The Thompson sisters were both with a boy in an expensive leotard. Maka didn't know much about him besides his physical appearance; black hair and golden eyes.
Maka's partner was a boy with white hair and red eyes; perhaps an albino. Soul was his name, which was odd, but what would one expect from someone who looked so odd anyway? Tsu's partner had blue hair and appeared to be his friend. The boys always slicked back their hair before class with way too much hair gel. Maka wondered how Soul would look without all the excessive gel, and even thought for a moment he might be handsome. But she couldn't worry too much about it, for class was about to start.
"Warmup time!" the teacher barked, interrupting her train of thought. Everyone started doing the warmup exercises and whispering to each other. Once they had finished stretching, they all got into their rows for their dance number: Puttin' on the Ritz.
If you're blue
The music started and everyone tapped to their pre-assigned spots.
And you don't know where to go to
Why don't you go where fashion sits?
With everyone in their places by now, and they all did digs.
Puttin' on the Ritz
Now side shuffles.
Different types who wear a day coat
Everyone spun around one beat after the one before the left to right and front row first.
Pants with stripes and cutaway coat
Perfect fits
Puttin' on the Ritz
Now side shuffles again.
Dressed up like a million dollar trooper
Now everyone tap-step ball changes off stage to grab props. The girls had a black sparkly umbrella as their prop, while all the guys had a black sparkly top hat. The matched really well with their costumes, even though the costumes were not worn at practice. The guys put on the hats and the girls placed the umbrellas over their shoulders.
Trying hard to look like Gary Cooper
Super-duper
They then tap-step heeled into partner positions with their props.
Come, let's mix where Rockefellers
They all did time-steps, the girls holding their umbrellas out to their left sides.
Walk with sticks or umbrellas
In their mitts
Puttin' on the Ritz
The guys held their hats out to their right sides as the did ball-changes
Dressed up like a million dollar trooper
Time-steps again, this time each partner group spinning one at a time.
Trying hard to look like Gary Cooper
Super-duper
Now time steps again.
Come, let's mix where Rockefellers
Walk with sticks or umbrellas
In their mitts
Finally, as the song is ending, guys grab girls by waist and girls do air splits in the duo groups. The trios keep doing time steps.
Puttin' on the Ritz
Puttin' on the Ritz
Puttin' on the Ritz
Puttin' on the Ritz
Class had only just started.