I started this back in February or so, but I'm changing it to comply with Canon. After Kurt's appalling NYADA letter I have no regrets writing this. Please forgive my Sue Sylvester storyline. It's just a thought I'm indulging in. I apologize if I misspelled Schuester, or anything else for that matter.
Disclaimer: I don't own Glee. Or Annie: The Musical
NYADA
Chapter One: New York, New York
"Good luck Kurt. I love you." Burt hugged his son before grabbing some baggage moving off. Now go say goodbye to your friends."
"I love you too." Kurt called before joining his friends. Santana was already bestowing her farewell hugs to their friends. Kurt hurried over and hugged the nearest person, Mercedes. As their parents loaded their luggage into the terminal Kurt and Santana went around bidding adieu to the Glee Club which had shown up in its entirety to wish its former members goodbye. Kurt and Finn broke apart and Mercedes nabbed him again.
"I'm so happy for you; I thought you wouldn't get in for a moment." Kurt clasped her tightly.
"You're not the only one. I had lost all hope of getting in." Mercedes stepped back and Kurt turned to see the only person he hadn't said farewell to. Blaine was too choked up to speak. He hadn't been him this cut up Their Counseling Session with Emma Pillsbury. And even then Kurt was pretty sure he'd been more composed. Kurt couldn't think of what to say so he just stepped forward and enfolded Blaine in his arms. Blaine clutched him as though he had just saved him from drowning and finally managed to get a word out:
"Goodbye."
"No," Kurt reminded him, "never goodbye. See you later."
"See you soon." Kurt wanted to say more to comfort his boyfriend but it was getting late and if he and Santana wanted to be on that plane they needed to get moving. So he just nodded and together the two grabbed their luggage and headed towards security.
The plane took off and once Kurt had gotten over the initial thrill. – Something which he was sure he would never get tired of. – His thoughts lingered on Mercedes words. "I almost thought you wouldn't get in for a moment." And he had replied truthfully. He had resigned himself to a life of long office hours and nights of Community Theater. So how had he gotten in?
"We only get one movie between the two of us," Santana said from next to him, "So do you have an opinion, or shall I just put on Sparkle?"
"I don't have a problem with Whitney Houston." He let it go. No need to dwell on the past.
Several months earlier… Coach Sylvester marched down the hall with a pair of scissors and a mind to cut off all of Schuester's head. But as she rounded the corner she felt a hand on her arm. She turned to find Becky at her elbow.
"What is it Becky?"
"It's Kurt, he's in the girl's bathroom crying and I really need to go."
"Just use a different stall."
"I can't do things when people are crying. I makes me depressed. And then I can't sleep at night."
"Alright Becky, let's go sort out Porcelain." Sue strode into the bathroom and banged on the door to the stall emitting sobs.
"Porcelain, sort yourself out Becky can't stand crying and neither can I. Life is never that bad."
"What life?" He had stopped sobbing but made no move to vacate the stall.
"The one you living. And if you think it's hard try living with-"
"Whatever you're living with at least you get to do what you love. I'd rather live with hepatitis, or get water-boarded, or pass a gall stone and be on Broadway then work in an office the rest of my life."
"There were few people who Sue ever held any level of respect for and usually whatever respect she had was short lived. After the Glee Club lost Regionals she had respected Schuester's ability to live it down and the way his kids stayed loyal to him despite him leading them to a loss. So she'd gotten Figgins to give the Glee Club another year. But those feeling had vanished over the summer and Schuester's lack to help her get rid of Beiste. But they had a mutual understanding now that Glee had saved the Cheerios from Roz Washington. She had respected Quinn's ability to appear so wholesome and then suddenly deliver a dose of pure bitch. But that feeling of mutual understanding had fled when Quinn had broken her trust by not coming forward with her pregnancy. Though, she had won it back over the years. She respected June and Becky's ability to deal with the prejudice that came with having Down's syndrome. And when Porcelain came up with his brief speeches she respected those. And even though they had never been very close they did seem to keep doing each other favors: He and Aretha had given her that makeover when she'd wanted one and led the Cheerios Madonna tribute. Although Wheezy had quit almost immediately Gelfling had led the Cheerios to their sixth consecutive National Championship. She'd gotten the Glee Club to stop barraging him with spirituals during the week they went all religious and she'd even resigned from Principle when she couldn't protect him from Karofsky. Even she couldn't remember why she'd done that as she was fairly sure she had to resolved to never let that position go. The bullying must have been what did it to her. Porcelain and his freakishly tall step-brother had spearheaded the planning of her sister's funeral. Although they'd arrived a little late he'd still joined the rest of the Glee Club in helping out at the homeless shelter. He had refused her request to perform as Porcelina, but it was hard to argue with a National Championship. Well, anything to make Becky feel better.
"What exactly is the matter?" The door opened and the eighteen-year-old exited it stiffly and leaned against the sinks.
"I didn't get in."
"Pardon"
"I didn't get into NYADA. I'm not going to New York, I'm not going to make it on Broadway and I'm going to be stuck here the rest of my life. You know, except for that thing with Karofsky I could take the bullying. I could take people hating me, and I could take not getting very many solos and I could take getting slushied and losing the male lead to Blaine and losing the election to Brittany and losing solos to Rachel, Finn, and Santana, and Artie, Tina, and Mike of all people. Because I thought: 'Well someday I'll get out of here, and be a star, and it will all be worth it then. But I didn't get a letter telling me I was saved, free to follow my dreams out of here. Rachel got one. Well anyway, I'm sorry to waste your time like this. I know how tight your schedule is." He dried his eyes and hurried out. Becky looked up at Sue.
"Isn't there something we could do? Because that isn't going to let me sleep any easier. He did help with the Ant-Prom where I was Queen."
"Don't worry Becky I'll take care of this, you take care of yourself and don't worry. Porcelain will get one of those letters, it will just be a little late."
"Thanks Coach."
"You're welcome, now have you seen where that curly-haired Schuester has gotten too? I've been meaning to give him a hair-cut."
That afternoon in the privacy afforded her by the cupboard in her office that she had concealed behind a trophy case, Sue Sylvester made some calls. Having failed to chop off Schuester's hair, she was determined to have something go her way.
"Hello? Am I speaking to the Principle of NYADA?"
"Actually this is her secretary-"
"I asked to speak directly to the Principle."
"May I ask who is call-"
"You may not. I will speak to the Principle immediately."
"Look that really isn't my deci-" A voice sounded in the background.
"For god's sake Tim. Just give me the freakin' phone so I can deal with this and work in peace." There was a scuffle as the phone got passed off.
"Hello this is the Principle of-"
"Yes I know who you are, now is it true that you are planning on not admitting an eighteen-year-old named Kurt Hummel to your fancy artsy school?"
"Look, if you're some relative, I really don't have time for this. We only have twenty to thirty slots. We have to make some hard decisions."
"I'm his former cheerleading coach. Sue Sylvester."
"Ah, the fallen champion." Sue gritted her teeth. Current, I'm a current champion.
"I would just like to make sure he is being cut for the right reasons. Porce- I mean Kurt Hummel, is quite talented. He led my Cheerios to their Sixth Consecutive National Title his sophomore year, the next year when he quit we didn't make it past sectionals. "On the other end of the line Sue could hear the Principle rifling through papers.
"I do remember hearing something about that. But I don't really follow cheerleading. That's really more my husband's thing. Look. I'm sure he's good, but his credentials are lacking. And although Madam Thibodeaux gave good notes on his Audition she went into more detail about McKinley's other applicant, Rachel Berry and said Vocal Adrenaline's former soloist Jesse St. James gave her quite the praise."
"Jesse St. James, as in her Schuester-esque ex-boyfriend?"
"Jesse St. –Wait, what?"
"They dated a couple years back but he dumped her to go back to Vocal Adrenaline, then came back after flunking out of UCLA and vowed to make up for dumping her by helping her career or something."
"You're saying he was biased?"
"Definitely, I assure you I could get equally eloquent gushing from Gelf-Kurt Hummel's boyfriend who was the soloist for the Warblers and has never flunked anything but it wouldn't be an opinion to base your admittance letters on. I would also note that Miss Berry's notes were based off her performance at nationals where she performed the female lead in two songs one of which was choreographed by someone else, while Mr. Hummel only got his audition piece comprising of one song which he choreographed himself. If Miss Berry's credentials are what is needed to get into this school I'm sure I could get several accomplished performers to gush about Hummel's talents and you could send one of your people to one of the Glee Club's summer performances where Kurt is more heavily featured. But I would like you to reflect on whether your school is really about talent, or being noisy."
"Look, if you would like to send me an example of his work I'll think about it, and I'll talk to Carmen about her ability to be swayed by sob-stories."
"Good. I'll send you his performance for Whitney Houston week."
Principle Morgan sighed and messaged her temples. If she saw another application she would scream. But now wasn't the time for recreation. There has to be something I can do that's moderately productive and doesn't involve paperwork. She stretched and noticed a sticky note on the edge of her desk.
Video audition emailed from a Sue Sylvester.
Opening her web browser she logged into her email before opening new tab and typing:
Show Choir National Championship winners 2012
Several results came up before she found a video entitled:
New Directions' star Rachel Berry performs Celine Dion's It's All Coming Back to Me Now and Meatloaf's Paradise by the Dashboard Light at Nationals securing them a win
It had been uploaded by someone called FunnyGirlGoldStar. She let that one load before coming back to her inbox and opening the email from Miss Sylvester. It had to attachments and she opened the one called Whitney Week. The music started before the image added in to show a brunette boy singing at a mike. His voice was surprisingly high and clear and he managed to put a lot of emotion into the song without that pushing sound many pop singers got. There was also a slight edge to his voice that made her think he could probably pull off very different, rougher, types of songs. His motions were theatrical but not overdone. She didn't think it was spectacular enough to make her fall over herself to admit him, but she had yet to see his competition. She jumped back to the tab with Miss Berry's performances. Voice was deeper but not necessarily better and she did have that slight pushing quality. But she filled up the space very well and the Kurt Hummel kid had used a mike. Although her performance was theatrical, she used smaller movements that would be harder to see if you were in the audience of, say, a Broadway performance. However part of the way through the song, the camera scanned the audience and Morgan could see Carmen arriving, meaning she had missed the beginning of the song. And she didn't look like what she was seeing now was taking her breath away.
The members of the show choir rearranged themselves for the next number and Morgan resituated herself in her chair. A bunch of girls ran onto the stage, and began rocking back and forth in sync but none of them were Miss Berry. Three guys began dancing on a platform and the one in front sang. He didn't really have a Broadway voice, but it did suite the song. Rachel ran onto the stage and the two danced together. And now some guy in a Mohawk was singing and even though Miss Berry wasn't onscreen the girls she could see were all dancing perfectly and she trusted Rachel was too. Then she heard the clear high voice of Kurt Hummel cut through and he and another boy danced across the back of the stage before the other boy took over completely and they rushed down the middle. Mr. Hummel didn't sing again, or do very intense dancing, but his movements were loose and he seemed comfortable on stage. After interacting with a few other performers he melded into the background and most of the girls arranged themselves across the stage, but she didn't spot Miss berry. The tall guy who had started singing first was now leading a bunch of other guys around the stage singing about going all the way, and Morgan was beginning to think Miss Sylvester's claim that this song was what gave Rachel an unfair advantage was exaggerating a lot, when she suddenly entered and it was obvious what the coach had meant. She was far more theatrical, and she moved around the stage far more now that she had choreography to tell her to. She and the tall male lead sung back and forth about whether to get married or just fool around and then the camera made another pass across the audience and she could see Thibodaux smiling. And now the whole group was dancing with Miss Berry and the tall guy in the center. Then the two of them ran around the stage a little and everyone moved to the front of the stage and raising their arms above their heads ended the song. Well unfair advantage or not Miss Berry definitely had the talent to make it at NYADA but going back to her email she stared at the attachment reading:
NYADA Audition piece.
And then she got the unfair bit. A first she wondered what he was thinking with the get-up. And what an over done song, but then he was nervously rambling about going in a different direction, and taking off the mask and cape, inviting some back up on, and announcing he was doing Not The Boy Next Door. Now she got the comment about choreography, the nervousness vanished and he was striding purposefully across the stage. Getting up on the piano, bending all the way down so he was lying on his back before popping back up. All the while filling the auditorium without a mike. He leapt across the stage and did a high kick and finished on a high G. As in two octaves above middle C. That wasn't in the original song but Morgan decided that was beside the point as long as he realized that was for audition purposes only and didn't think he could rearrange the music on Broadway.
Morgan sprang up from the couch and rushed to the phone.
"Tim? Yes, I'd like you to call this number and inform them there has been a mistake and Mr. Hummel did in fact get in."
Sue was directing some Cheerios on where to hang posters advertising their next assembly performance when she heard a shout of pure joy.
"Oh, my god, oh my god, ohmigod!" Sue rarely cared how other people felt, but she couldn't help feeling rather pleased as Porcelain came racing down the hall waving a piece of paper. He skidded to a halt in front of a group of Glee Clubbers. "You'll never guess who just called me: an admittance director at NYADA to say that they re-evaluated class sizes and they had an extra slot they didn't know about before, and apparently I was literally one spot short of the cut so… I-I'm going! I'm really going!" Various members squealed, Tina burst into tears for some reason, Mercedes high-fived him.
"Boy, you best not be forgetting about me once you're in New York with Berry and Santana."
"Of course not." Finn clapped him on the back.
"Congrats dude."
'Thank you, Finn." Blaine leaned in and gave him a hug.
"I'm so happy for you. You're going to be great. NYADA will thank their lucky socks they let you in."
Becky looked up at Sue.
"Thanks Coach."
"Anything for you Becky Jackson."
Kurt and Santana grabbed their luggage and began to make their way across the terminal. Together they made their way through customs and out into the city. Kurt stopped and took a deep breath. Filling his lungs with air. New York air.
"Santana!" Kurt breathed. Barely able to contain his excitement.
"What? Prancy Fancy." Kurt rolled his eyes.
"Santana. We're in New York."
"You don't say." Kurt's phone buzzed he opened it to reveal a text from Blaine:
Good Luck! Have fun in N.Y.C.! –Blaine P.S. I love you.
Kurt smiled and quickly sent a text back:
I love you too.
Then he returned his attention to the surrounding streets. Suddenly two hands reached around him from behind and covered his eyes.
"Guess who?"
"Rachel!" Kurt snatched her hands away and Santana joined them in a group hug. They broke aprt and Kurt straightened out his clothes.
"Listen. Santana, I now you should go over to your apartment and unpack and start looking for work, and Rachel, I know I should head over to NYADA and start memorizing my schedule and signing up for extra-curriculars and have you show me around. But don't you think you could show us around New York a bit?"
"Tweedle-Dee, I think that was one of the best ideas you've had all year. After agreeing to watching Sparkle without a fight."
"Oh, Kurt, Santana, I would be happy to show you around."
Kurt: N.Y.C
What is it about you?
You're big,
You're loud,
You're tough.
Santana: N.Y.C.
I go years without you.
Then I,
Can't get,
Enough.
Kurt: N.Y.C.
The shadows at sundown.
The roofs,
That scrape,
The sky.
Rachel: N.Y.C.
The rich and the rundown.
The,
Parade,
Goes by.
Santana: What other town has the Empire State,
And a mayor five-foot-two.
Rachel: No other town in the whole forty-eight,
Could half compare to you.
Kurt: N.Y.C.
You make them all postcards.
You crowd.
Rachel: You cramp.
Kurt: You're still,
The champ.
Amen, for…
Santana: N.Y.C.
Just got here this morning!
Three bucks,
Two bags,
One me!
Kurt: N.Y.C.
I give you fair warning:
Up there,
In lig-hts,
I'll be!
Rachel: Go ask the Gershwins or Kaufman and Hart,
The place they love the best.
Kurt: Though Californians pay big for their arts,
Their fan mail comes addressed to…
Rachel: N.Y.C. (Kurt and Santana: Ooh, ooh, ooh.)
Tomorrow a pent house.
That's way up high,
Tonight,
The "Y"
All: Why not?
It's N.Y.C.
Santana left for her apartment and Kurt and Rachel arrived at NYADA as evening set in. They talked to a lady at a desk who directed them to a man at another desk who showed them to another lady at a desk.
"Your names."
"Rachel Berry."
"Kurt. Kurt Hummel."
"Ah… oh there. And there. Yes I've got you both here. But Miss Berry, you already have a dorm."
"Well," Rachel glanced at Kurt. "We were really hoping to room together."
"Yes, you made a mention of that on your forms actually…" She glanced back and forth between them. And Kurt realized what she was wondering.
"Oh, no. Nothing like that. I have boyfriend."
"I thought it might be something like that but I just had to be sure. We have zero-tolerance for sex or alcohol on campus."
"Well you won't have to worry about that. The boyfriend in question is living in Ohio."
"And I'm planning on steering clear of boys."
"And Rachel and I vowed a while back to steer clear of alcohol."
"Well then. I'm sure you'll do fine. "
"Thank you." The lady handed Kurt a key. Kurt got up but Rachel made no move to rise.
"I just had a few questions about whether students are allowed to book the auditorium and what the rules are on dorm noise levels..."
Kurt sighed, then he spotted a bulletin board hanging on the wall smack in the middle was a giant poster, and just in case the white mask and red rose didn't make it perfectly clear spelled out in giant letters were the words:
The Phantom of the Opera.
Beneath that there was a smaller but still large enough to be attention-grabbing notice that read:
This year NYADA will be producing The Phantom of the Opera as the school musical. Anyone can audition. But there are some requirements:
You must perform a song.
You must recite a one to three minute monologue.
You must perform both by memory.
You must be completely available every day between five and eight pm. That is when we will rehearse. This includes weekends. No exceptions.
Sign up below and you will be assigned an audition slot. Auditions will begin November eleventh and close December sixteenth. This sign-up sheet will be taken down October thirty-first. Below was a piece of paper with lines on it. Each had a name on it. It was the same with the page beneath it. And the one beneath that. Kurt had to flip through fifteen pages before he found one with some empty lines on it.
"Thinking of signing up?" Rachel was beside him. The lady must have answered her questions.
"Can't hurt, can it. You?"
"Absolutely. I mean, hello? Christine? Amazing, under-appreciated singer? She's got Rachel Berry written all over her." Kurt would normally roll his eyes at this but this time her cocky-ness worried him.
"Rachel, we're not McKinley High seniors in Lima, Ohio anymore. We're Freshman at NYADA, one of the most competitive colleges in the country. In New York City, the home of the stars. You've got to stop acting like the world belongs to you. You're going to get hurt. I personally would be happy to get cast as a walk-on. But that seems like a silly role to audition for." Kurt picked up the pen that dangled from beside the sign-up sheet and added his name. "I think I'll audition for the part of Musoir André, or maybe Firmin."
"Well I'm sure you'd do well in either of those roles. But I can't help it Kurt, I was born to dream big." She added her name to the list. Then she spotted another notice. "Hey look at this." Another sign to the right proclaimed:
NYADA Showcase
Do you have what it takes to represent NYADA at numerous theatrical festivals and competitions? Prepare a number and audition to find out. Our performances include singing, dancing, and occasionally skits, and scenes from musicals.
Below was a sign-up sheet but this one was different from the one for the musical. Each line had a time next to it and the top of each page had a different date on it. Instead of signing up and getting assigned a slot you signed up for the slot itself. Rachel was already flipping through signing up for an afternoon slot about two weeks away. Kurt signed his name on the line right beneath hers.
"C'mon Kurt I'll show you our room. It's getting late and I know how long it takes you to get ready for bed, remember that sleepover we had with Mercedes?" They exited headed down a long hall lined with numbered doors. "And I suggest you save un-packing because there is no way you will put your clothes away in any decent amount of time." They reached their room and Kurt unlocked it. Once inside Kurt leaned against the door and took it all in. There was a bunk bed on his left, a desk on his right that looked big enough to fit two people, there was a small window about eye-level on the wall between the bed and the desk. Well, Kurt's eye-level anyway. On the wall to their right was a door. Kurt opened it and was pleased to find a spacious bathroom complete with light-bulb-lined mirrors that looked like something out of a movie.
"I'm going to get ready for bed Rachel, we can talk when I'm done."
"Right, I'll skip my regimen tonight. Knowing how long you take." Kurt was rolled his eyes and examined his array of pajamas. He spotted the one he'd planned to wear his first night at NYADA and grabbed it. He also retrieved his skin-care kit and locked himself in the bathroom. After changing into his pajamas Kurt began his skin sloughing regimen. But after a minute he stopped. He had been doing this since elementary school but ever since he and Blaine had started going out they'd always done it together on the phone. Kurt's vision blurred as his eyes filled with tears. All he wanted to do was call Blaine and have him spurt a few goofy lines that would cheer Kurt up instantly. Or complain about classes, or Glee club or an outfit Kurt had helped him plan... But it was late in New York, and time was even farther ahead in Ohio. Kurt had been so caught up in New York he hadn't even texted Blaine goodnight. Sobs began to build up inside him. He lay his arms on the washstand and buried his face in them. After a few minutes the tears slowed and the sobbing became less earnest. Kurt shook himself. You're never going to get ready for bed like this. He still couldn't bring himself to go through his skin sloughing though so he exfoliated instead.
Once he was done Kurt packed up his things and exited the bathroom. Rachel was leaning against the wall.
"Rachel?" She didn't answer. Was she alright? Maybe she was going through some Finn-Missing the way he'd gone through Blaine-Missing a few minutes ago in the bathroom. Her hair hung over her face so he couldn't tell if she was crying. They had broken up a few months ago, did it still hurt this bad? Did she and Finn have any evening traditions? Kurt didn't know. Should he try and comfort Rachel? Or did she want to be left alone? Before he could decide what to do Rachel mumbled something that sounded like "I'll march my band." And fell sideways onto the floor. Her hair parted enough for him to see her eyes were closed. She was fast asleep! She must have drifted off waiting for him to come out of the bathroom! Feeling a little embarrassed Kurt walked over and scooped the tiny girl up in his arms. He tucked her carefully in to bed. And moved her bags so they leaned against the wall. He stared out the window a moment at the stretch of water that was just visible. Kurt turned leaning against the sill watching his friend sleep.
Give in
Don't fight
Good girl
Good night
Sleep tight
In N.Y.C.
As I'm sure those of you who are familiar with Annie have noticed I'm following in Glee's footsteps and editing the songs. I will list the songs used in each chapter at the bottom so you can look them up and listen to them in their entirety.
Hope you liked it. Please, if you have any ideas for what should happen, I'm open to suggestions.
The song from this chapter is:
N.Y.C. from Annie.
