The Palos Hills crew finished their meals, including some interesting desserts, and headed off to their next adventure. The small concert hall was only a few blocks away, so they all decided to walk there and enjoy the scenery of downtown Dublin. All the street lights were lit, making everything look super pretty. Everyone looked in every window they passed, feeling like they were walking down Main Street in their hometown. For the first time since they started this adventure, they actually felt at home.
They arrived at the concert hall to see a huge crowd of locals gathered outside. The group joined the crowd, still unaware of what the concert was going to be. All they knew was that it must be good if this many people wanted to see it.
Finally, one of the students couldn't take it anymore. She had to know what was going on.
"Hey, do you guys know who's performing tonight?" Tamara asked some of the locals.
"Celtic Women and Lord of the Dance are doing a special collaboration tonight." The woman in front of them said.
"It's going to be the concert of the year." Another woman added.
"Ooh, sounds fancy." Clark said.
"Traditional Irish music with traditional Irish dance. I love it!" Jake said.
"I wish I could dance like that." Lissa said.
"Actually, you will." Mr. Mishra said.
Everyone shot him a confused look.
"What Mr. Mishra is trying to tell you is that after the show you guys are going to meet with the performers and learn some of the steps." Ms. Marks explained.
Everyone was shocked.
"No way!" Matty said.
"Really?" Ming added.
"Cool!" Jenna was excited.
Even though I've got two left feet, I can't wait to try it. For some odd reason learning riverdance has always been on my bucket list.
The group excitedly walked with the rest of the crowd into the concert hall. Mr. Mishra and Ms. Marks guided them past groups of locals and other tourists to a large open area pretty close to the front.
"These seats are fantastic!" Ming exclaimed.
"We couldn't even get this close at the Jay-Z concert last summer!" Lissa added.
The group sat anxiously, all waiting for the concert to begin. Finally, after the concert hall had filled, the leader of Lord of The Dance, Michael Flatley, appeared onstage.
"How is everybody tonight?" Michael shouted to the crowd, who all cheered and screamed excitedly in response. "We've got a great show for you tonight; so sit back and relax, as these amazing performers show you what it truly means to be Irish."
Michael left the stage as the lights dimmed. Moments later, the Gaelic music began and the stage was set. The Palos Hills gang watched in amazement. They knew any minute the stage would be filled with incredible singers and dancers.
Two spotlights lit the stage, following two small groups of girls dressed in authentic Irish dresses to the center, where they hopped and kicked in a little circle, keeping their arms tight to their sides, allowing their legs to show their talent. More and more dancers danced their way onto the stage, and when the music picked up, the backbeat from the drums changed to the tap of the men's shoes.
The Palos Hills students couldn't believe what they were seeing. Not only was the choreography spot on, but the emotion of the dancers could be felt throughout the room.
After a few fast paced routines, many of the dancers left the stage, leaving only a few girls slowly gliding to the music. As they elegantly moved around the stage, four woman wearing beautiful, almost prom-like gowns made their way onto the stage. One began to softly play the violin, the spotlight following her all around the stage.
As each angelic voice was heard, a new spotlight fell, making the women's dresses sparkle as the light touched it. They were truly angels, floating across the stage in their glistening gowns, every note being hit just right.
After singing "You Raise Me Up" and "Amazing Grace", there wasn't a dry eye in the place. Jenna looked over and even saw Matty shed a single tear.
A sensitive jock, Matty definitely is one in a million. I can't believe how lucky I got. Every day since we've been here Matty has proven why I made the right choice. I may have loved Jake, but I'm in love with Matty, and nothing is going to change that.
Jenna snuggled up close to Matty, who wrapped his arm around her, as they watched the rest of the show.
After the show, the crowd slowly dissipated, allowing the students of Palos Hills to make their way to the front of the auditorium.
Gathered right in front of the stage, the students waited patiently for the dancers to arrive. A few minutes later, Michael came back out joined by two other men, their shoes clicking at every step they took. Two women came after them, much more quietly, not having the taps on their shoes.
"You guys must be the students of Palos Hills High School." Michael said.
"Not all of us. Unless you think I'm young enough to be a student, because, you know I could be. I'm more of a friend to these guys anyway." Val babbled, wrapping her arms around Jenna and Tamara's shoulders. "I'm their VP/chaperon."
"It's always important to have an authority figure around." Michael said, kissing the top of Val's hand.
"So where are you guys from?" One of the male dancers asked.
"California; it's in America." Lissa said.
The dancers looked at her oddly; all knowing California was in the United States.
"So, our little California surfer kids, who's ready to learn the art of Irish step?" Michael asked.
The group below him cheered and jumped around in excitement.
"Well then get up here and dance!" Michael said excitedly. He and the other dancers helped the students, and their chaperons, onto the stage.
Once everyone in the group was on stage, they all spread out, not wanting to hurt each other just in case they couldn't hack it as Irish dancers.
"Now, normally you see Irish dancers wearing special shoes." One of the female dancers said as they all pointed to their shoes. "But for now, the shoes you have on will do just fine."
"Why don't we start off with a simple combination?" Michael said, turning around so he was facing the same direction as the students.
"Let's try a point-hop-back." Michael demonstrated, pointing his right foot, quickly pulling it up back behind his left leg, hopping on his left foot before his right foot hit the ground.
The students stared at him as he quickly finished move. Some attempted, but failed. Others, including Jenna, just stared at him, trying to figure out how they were going to dance like that.
Yeah, looks like Riverdance is going to be harder than I thought.
Jenna looked over at Matty, who almost fell trying to hop and kick at the same time.
Matty looks like such a dork, but I love him for it. If he's ok with looking like an idiot trying to dance, then I guess I can too.
With all of her classmates watching, Jenna tried the same point-hop-back as everyone else. Unfortunately, she forgot that she had to left feet. One leg caught on the other, and the next thing she knew, she was falling backwards. She was about to hit the stage when something stopped her.
"I got ya." Jenna heard the voice she loved whisper into her ear.
Matty helped Jenna back to her feet.
"Looks like somebody has the luck of the Irish on their side." One of the male dancers smiled, seeing Matty grab Jenna in the nick of time.
Matty and Jenna looked at each other and started laughing.
"We both royally suck at this." Matty laughed.
Jenna smiled. "We just need a little more practice."
"A little?" Matty smirked.
"Ok, so a lot. Now are you in, or is big bad Matty afraid to look stupid in front of his friends?" Jenna laughed, giving Matty a smile.
Matty took Jenna's hands into his and pressed his forehead to hers. "You're on."
The two laughed and danced horribly, not caring how stupid they looked, because really, they were just as bad as everyone else. But, just like everyone else, they gradually got better and better.
"This was easier than I thought." Clark said, kicking and hopping around the stage.
"Just took a little getting used to." Jake added, adding his own style to some of the moves.
Tamara saw Jake adding his own style and decided to join him.
"Hey everybody, watch this!" Tamara danced her little heart out.
Thinking she was hot stuff, she busted out a few extra moves. Unfortunately, what she didn't notice was the edge of the stage. One wrong step was all it took. Down she went, collapsing on the floor below, her leg getting caught on a wire.
"T!" Jenna jumped off the stage to help her best friend.
"Ow. I'm alright." Tamara tried getting up with Jenna's help.
When she tried putting weight on her left foot, she couldn't. The pain shot through her whole body, forcing her to collapse onto her best friend.
"You're definitely not alright." Jenna helped Tamara onto one of the seats.
Less than a minute later, one of the professionals came down to see what happened.
"My ankle hurts." Tamara said, holding her foot.
The professional signaled over one of the show's on-call medics, who examined Tamara's foot carefully.
"Looks like a sprain, better get her to the hospital." The medic said.
Everyone's mouths dropped, especially Tamara's. Did this really have to happen? She was thrilled about this trip, and now she wasn't going to be able to enjoy it as much as she possibly could.
The medic called the hospital and told them someone was on their way. Doing whatever they could to help, Matty and Jake carried Tamara out of the auditorium to the awaiting car.
"I'm going to. Got to make sure my best gal pal is ok." Val said once they got outside.
"What about the others?" Mr. Mishra asked.
"Take them back to the hotel. I'll be back with T-Smooth once everything gets sorted out." Val said, hopping in the back seat with Tamara.
And just like that, the car was gone, leaving a small group of students outside, worried and wondering what to do next.
A/N = Sorry I haven't updated in a while. And I lied, this isn't the last chapter in Ireland. One more after this, and then off to our next destination! So far England is winning with Spain in second. Don't forget to vote for either England, Spain, or Germany for our next destination!