OPERA WEEK CONTINUED

To the kids' surprise, Mr Du Pont hadn't been joking about the canteen. He walked in with the kids as if he'd been going there for weeks and joined the back of the queue even though the kids tried to persuade him to go to the front. Miss Honey had done everybody proud, with a notice on the door "Opera Feast – Carmen get it."

The menu board said "Carbonara Traviata, Symphonic Salad or Lasagne Verdi."

Robyn was torn; she wanted to have her favourite Carbonara but after Ms Elphinstone's comment felt it should be salad.

"Hi, Robyn, love. Why not have the Carbonara with some salad today?"

Robyn grinned and held out her plate.

"Not that this lovely lady needs salad but it is so nice with pasta" Mr Du Pont commented.

"Please will there be time for me to go to the fence and talk to our Cal?" Ethan asked him.

"No, there is no going to the fence today."

"Oh… okay."

"Why should you want to go to the fence to speak to Cal when here he is to eat with us all?"

Mr Du Pont waved his arm and bang on cue, Cal came out of Miss Honey's kitchen to sit with Ethan.

It was a lovely informal meal, during which Mr Du Pont spoke to David, who had gone a little shy again:

"Now this afternoon we must find you a role, David, you have not yet had your turn. You can do something with Ben because he is your friend."

David said trustingly:

"He's my friend but I pretend he's my secret brother."

"Ah, there is an opera story about a man with a secret brother, but it is a very sad story. Because of a tragic thing that happened when the boys were small, the bad guy does not know the hero is his brother and he has him beheaded."

"Oh NO!" David and Ben chorused in genuine horror.

"So, there is your project for writing day… should you choose to accept. I will give you an outline of this story and you and Ben shall create a happy ending between you!"

David and Ben high-fived.

Cal thanked Mr Du Pont for inviting him to the feast during dessert, which offered a choice of Miss Honey's home-made sugar free mousses or a fresh fruit salad.

The kids were in a really good mood when they filed back into the hall.

"There will be a lot of moving around later so for now I am going to play you a short film to let you relax after our fine lunch. There is no singing but the music and the story are easy."

The story was 'Peter and the Wolf'. It was about a brave boy who trapped a bad wolf and it was sent away to the zoo. All the animals shown had their own little theme tune. Ben liked the one for the cat, he thought Eric Chiltern would like to strut round to it. The cat and bird were too clever to be caught but the poor vain duck was caught and eaten by the wolf. Ethan wanted to cry and was biting his lip hard. But at the end the duck's music played and the man telling the story on the film said that because the wolf had been so greedy he had swallowed the duck alive. Then, even better, the wolf gave a giant sneeze and the duck was seen flying through the air then landing, unhurt but very puzzled, in her pond. Ethan was able to laugh and clap along with the others.

The next part was spent discussing stories that would make good operas or music films.

"Now an early break because we have a lot to do later" Mr Du Pont said. Zax walked up to him nervously.

"Please Mr Du Pont, have you time to come to our hut? We want to make you an honory member of the gang."

Mr Du Pont smiled and asked his assistant to set up the music while he was gone.

He was brilliant and recited the Gang Promise, hand on heart, just perfectly but wouldn't take a Gang Gift.

"There will be plenty of gifts for me when I come back on Friday and get to read all your stories and see your drawings."

When they came back in and the kids sat down again, Mr Du Pont's assistant gave him a suitcase. At first the kids were worried because the singer pulled it open and threw ladies clothes all over the floor.

"Now, who has heard of an Opera called Carmen?"

A few hands.

"Okay, well, it's about a young woman who causes trouble with a capital T because she is a wild one. She has got herself mixed up with a gang of smugglers and persuaded her boyfriend to join them too, and here they are, hiding out in the mountains. They are ready to bring the goods down the mountain but three customs guards have been spotted. Carmen tells them not to worry, she and her friends will flirt with the customs men and the gang will be able to sneak past with the swag! Now what I want to see is the men in the gang taking the Mickey out of the ladies. I want three boys – I would like David, Ben and Jacob, if they would be so kind – to put on the ladies clothes in really silly ways – like this, for example-"

He put a bra on his head so it looked like an old flying helmet. The kids burst out laughing.

"So we will play this song once and then the next time I want my three friends here to do silly things with the clothes to make us all laugh. Now Jess shall be Carmen and all the other ladies shall be her friends. You must end up chasing the boys round trying to get the clothes back off them!"

Ben, David and Jacob had a wonderful time. Ben put on an old necklace from the pile and wore it round his waist, swinging it about like a set of keys on a chain, pretending to bash himself with it. Jacob stepped into a pair of huge panties and strutted about with them over his trousers. David put a blouse on over his head but instead of putting his head through the opening, kept his head covered up and wiggled his hands about so he looked like a spook.

Everybody was falling about at the end of the song.

"It is nearly time for our day to be over" said Mr Du Pont. To his delight the kids groaned. But Mr Du Pont continued:

"Now, it is with great regret that I can find no role for Mr Keogh's famous Dog but she will always remind me of one of my favourite composers, Offenbach. Because Mr Keogh says she often barks when he's trying to get some sleep! You will recognize this music and your only task, my friends, is to dance to it. And here to help you out are your exercise teachers!"

Miss Dixon and Mr Dean ran in. The kids howled with laughter; they had little ballet skirts over their tracksuits.

The music started; it was the can-can and everybody went wild, dancing and high-kicking. Even Mr Du Pont teamed up with Mr Dean and Miss Dixon to high-kick.

Mrs Beauchamp came in at the end of the music.

"Now I hope you'll all give Mr Du Pont a nice clap for coming to see us all. We'll see him again on Friday when he judges our writing and drawing competitions, but for now I'd like you to thank him Holby Mixed Infants style!"

The applause was almost deafening and Mr Du Pont did a little bow at the end and said he'd had a brilliant day too.

"I shall see you again on Friday but one more person needs applause right now; the person who phoned me to make all this happen. My friends - I give you Mr Keogh!"

Mr Keogh, red as a beetroot but smiling, came into the hall.

"Dad?" David and Ben gasped together.