Disclaimer: All of the newsies, plus Medda Larkson, Brian Denton, and Weasel, belong to Disney. Charles Dickens wrote "A Christmas Carol", and I'm using the dramatization by Michael Paller. I own Springs, Ariana, Tessie, Taylor, Cindy, Ace, Seraph, Cerise, Jade, the Darte twins, Bethany, Bliss, Fish, Mikko, and Curls. Mrs. Holmes kind of belongs to me; she's based on Peggy Holmes, the choreographer of Newsies.
A/N: Thanks to Stretch for all of her EXCELLENT reviews. This story will have two or three more chapters after this one, but they may not be updated for awhile because I have dance rehearsals and recitals from May 12 to the 17.
Seraph's POV:
October and November went by quickly. Mush did talk to Ariana during the fire drill, and they ended up going to the movies one weekend. Not much happened after that, but Mush was satisfied.
Now, on the week after Thanksgiving, the play has finally begun to improve. Kid Blink and Racetrack have made it a habit of giving Denton a tranquilizer-spiked flavored water at the beginning of each practice, and Medda has finally run out of nineteenth-century dresses and has begun wearing modern (though horrendously uncoordinated) outfits. Specs still has problems staying in character, Itey can never remember his lines, Crutchy broke his leg again and now has to use two crutches, and Snoddy is always sneezing during the graveyard scenes, but on the whole the play has gotten better. Everyone else knows their lines, has their costumes, and can pronounce their characters' names (even Fezziwig). The only bad part? Opening night's just a week away. Medda has called for dress rehearsals before and after school every day this week, in a valiant attempt to keep us all from making complete fools of ourselves when we perform. Actually, the beginning of the play is going quite well. It's just when we get to the middle of Act Two that we start to have problems...
Spot's POV:
I know that my sister thinks I'm a horrible actor, but it's really the rest of the cast that's horrible at it. Take this morning's rehearsal, for instance...
"Let's start at the Charwoman's first line, darlings," Medda directed.
"Let the charwoman alone be first. Let the laundress alone be second, and let the undertaker be third," Bliss McNamorn said. Bliss, Fish, and the Beast rushed across the set, into my "pawnshop".
"You couldn't have met in a better place. We're all suited to our calling. We're well matched," I said when they entered. I've never really understood that line. I tried to get Seraph to explain it to me, but she's still mad at me for agreeing with Cerise on the whole tofu-burger-for-Christmas-dinner thing. I don't see what the big deal is, but it really bothered Seraph.
"Every person has the right to take care of himself. He always did," Bliss recited her next line. We all paused, waiting for the Beast's next line.
"Uh...what's my line?" she asked.
"That's true indeed. No man more so," Medda recounted, rolling her eyes.
"That's true indeed. No more man so," the Beast blundered, fishing in her pocket for her lipstick. She is obsessed with that stuff. No matter how many times we tell her how ugly bright red lipstick makes her look, the Beast still wears about twenty layers of it.
"No, no, no darling!" Medda shouted. "No...MAN...MORE...so!" We waited for Bethany to say her line AGAIN, but instead we heard a much more heavenly sound.
"Kids...I'm back!" a voice shouted, and the cast turned to stare at Mrs. Holmes, our English teacher, who was walking down the main aisle of the auditorium.
"Aren't you supposed to be having a baby?" Mush asked. I know he's my sister's best friend, but he can be a little slow sometimes.
"I already did, Mush," Mrs. Holmes said. "Kenneth Robert Holmes, seven pounds, twelve ounces, twenty inches long, and enjoying his first day at the baby-sitter's. I couldn't miss the winter play!"
"We're saved!" Seraph cried, and the entire cast rushed off the stage to envelope Mrs. Holmes in a giant group hug. Medda may be the new head of Carleton's drama department, but Mrs. Holmes is always the one who really pulls the plays together.
Medda did look slightly upset at Mrs. Holmes' arrival, though. "Um...excuse me darlings," she said loudly, "but I'M the drama teacher. And we are in the middle of a rehearsal." Reluctantly, we walked back up to the stage. The rehearsal would go on, but at least with Mrs. Holmes here we had a hope of being ready for opening night.
A/N: Thanks to Stretch for all of her EXCELLENT reviews. This story will have two or three more chapters after this one, but they may not be updated for awhile because I have dance rehearsals and recitals from May 12 to the 17.
Seraph's POV:
October and November went by quickly. Mush did talk to Ariana during the fire drill, and they ended up going to the movies one weekend. Not much happened after that, but Mush was satisfied.
Now, on the week after Thanksgiving, the play has finally begun to improve. Kid Blink and Racetrack have made it a habit of giving Denton a tranquilizer-spiked flavored water at the beginning of each practice, and Medda has finally run out of nineteenth-century dresses and has begun wearing modern (though horrendously uncoordinated) outfits. Specs still has problems staying in character, Itey can never remember his lines, Crutchy broke his leg again and now has to use two crutches, and Snoddy is always sneezing during the graveyard scenes, but on the whole the play has gotten better. Everyone else knows their lines, has their costumes, and can pronounce their characters' names (even Fezziwig). The only bad part? Opening night's just a week away. Medda has called for dress rehearsals before and after school every day this week, in a valiant attempt to keep us all from making complete fools of ourselves when we perform. Actually, the beginning of the play is going quite well. It's just when we get to the middle of Act Two that we start to have problems...
Spot's POV:
I know that my sister thinks I'm a horrible actor, but it's really the rest of the cast that's horrible at it. Take this morning's rehearsal, for instance...
"Let's start at the Charwoman's first line, darlings," Medda directed.
"Let the charwoman alone be first. Let the laundress alone be second, and let the undertaker be third," Bliss McNamorn said. Bliss, Fish, and the Beast rushed across the set, into my "pawnshop".
"You couldn't have met in a better place. We're all suited to our calling. We're well matched," I said when they entered. I've never really understood that line. I tried to get Seraph to explain it to me, but she's still mad at me for agreeing with Cerise on the whole tofu-burger-for-Christmas-dinner thing. I don't see what the big deal is, but it really bothered Seraph.
"Every person has the right to take care of himself. He always did," Bliss recited her next line. We all paused, waiting for the Beast's next line.
"Uh...what's my line?" she asked.
"That's true indeed. No man more so," Medda recounted, rolling her eyes.
"That's true indeed. No more man so," the Beast blundered, fishing in her pocket for her lipstick. She is obsessed with that stuff. No matter how many times we tell her how ugly bright red lipstick makes her look, the Beast still wears about twenty layers of it.
"No, no, no darling!" Medda shouted. "No...MAN...MORE...so!" We waited for Bethany to say her line AGAIN, but instead we heard a much more heavenly sound.
"Kids...I'm back!" a voice shouted, and the cast turned to stare at Mrs. Holmes, our English teacher, who was walking down the main aisle of the auditorium.
"Aren't you supposed to be having a baby?" Mush asked. I know he's my sister's best friend, but he can be a little slow sometimes.
"I already did, Mush," Mrs. Holmes said. "Kenneth Robert Holmes, seven pounds, twelve ounces, twenty inches long, and enjoying his first day at the baby-sitter's. I couldn't miss the winter play!"
"We're saved!" Seraph cried, and the entire cast rushed off the stage to envelope Mrs. Holmes in a giant group hug. Medda may be the new head of Carleton's drama department, but Mrs. Holmes is always the one who really pulls the plays together.
Medda did look slightly upset at Mrs. Holmes' arrival, though. "Um...excuse me darlings," she said loudly, "but I'M the drama teacher. And we are in the middle of a rehearsal." Reluctantly, we walked back up to the stage. The rehearsal would go on, but at least with Mrs. Holmes here we had a hope of being ready for opening night.
