"Right everyone settle down." Miss McCracken shouted to the cast.
"Firstly I have news about Kim." The cast members stopped their chatter to
listen. "The doctors say that she is making good progress. Hopefully she
will be out of intensive care by next week. However she will not be well
enough to do the play in two weeks time. Dana, I'm afraid that we are
going to have to continue without an understudy for your part and just hope
that nothing goes wrong."
The cast murmured uneasily and Lark nudged Dana. "Don't worry, we are all looking out for each other now." She whispered reassuringly.
"Anyway on to our first technical rehearsal. We have all the lighting and staging set up ready for a first rehearsal." Miss McCracken indicated the elaborate set on the stage and impressive light rig. "We won't do the lighting check until next week when we have the dress rehearsals. Your costumes are ready by the way."
This caused a lot of excitement among the cast, which eventually simmered down. "So let us start with the dancers. Get into your positions on stage for the opening number, and try not to fall over any of the set!"
The dancers ran into position. Lark took her place at the back of the hall. At the start of the dance she had to make her way up the aisle doing cartwheels, flips and handsprings. The aim of this was that she would end up on the stage just as the music really kicked in and she led the dancers for the first number.
As the music began slowly Lark began making her way forward, somersaulting and cart wheeling her way forwards. Suddenly she stopped dead.
"Cut! What is wrong?" Miss McCracken asked irritably.
"Someone had better put a chair over this bit of floor." Lark said. She ran a finger down it. "Someone has put grease on the floor, someone could have a nasty accident."
"Namely you." Lark whispered in Lark's ear as she brought a chair over and placed it over the grease patch. "If you had cart wheeled over that you would have gone flying, probably broken an arm or something."
"I know." Lark stood up and stuffed a tissue in her pocket.
"Right, skip the dance number. Lets move on to the next scene, Dracula and his assistant with the Night Queen." Miss McCracken sat down again as Lark, Stuart and a boy called Sam took their places on the stage.
After about half an hour of intense acting the three teenagers were getting tired. Whilst they were waiting for Miss McCracken to sort out a problem with bookings for seat they talked.
"Doesn't this whole idea of a potential murderer scare you two?" Sam asked.
"No, we just have to stay alert." Lark replied.
"I agree with you Sam. This guy will do anything to stop this play from happening." Agreed Stuart.
"From the top guys!" Miss McCracken called. They took their positions. As Stuart and Sam began reading their lines Lark's attention drifted. She started gazing around and looking at the amazing lighting rig. One light in particular caught her eye. It was red and positioned right above the stage. But something about it was wrong. As Lark looked on she saw it distinctly wobble.
"Sam, look out!" She screamed. Sam looked above his head to see the big light wobble and fall from its perch. Lark made to run over to him, but Stuart got there before her. Just in time he pushed Sam out of the way so that the light crashed to the ground on the spot where Sam had been standing. Sam lay on the ground shivering, staring at the shattered light.
"Oh my God!" He whispered.
"Sam, are you OK?" Miss McCracken rushed over to him.
"Yeah, thanks to Stuart here." Sam gasped.
"It was nothing." Stuart shrugged.
"Well, if everyone is OK then we shall continue with the rehearsal." Miss McCracken said.
"What?" Sam asked.
"The show must go on after all." She added.
"No way!" Sam shook his head as he got to his feet. "I'm not risking my life just to be in some stupid show. I quit." He left the hall immediately. A few people around him nodded, saying, "This is too dangerous." In total five people left the room, leaving Miss McCracken standing on the stage.
"Fine." She said. "Then we will just adjust the dance to make it for less people. And Kurt, you will have to take over as Dracula's assistant."
The rest of the cast returned to rehearsing, but all of them were noticeably jumpy about standing under lights.
"It was lucky someone wasn't killed." Batman said to Lark later. He was once again in her bedroom, sitting on her bed as she explained what had happened in detail.
"Two attempts in one rehearsal, this is getting serious." Lark said. She put her hand in her pocket and pulled out the tissue. "I got a sample of the grease, but I doubt that it will help."
Batman took the tissue. "You never know." He pocketed the tissue and the half full bottle of water.
He got up and crossed to the window. "Keep up the good work. I'll see you soon, but I hope I won't if you see what I mean." He left as quickly as he had come.
But this time Lark did not watch him fly out of sight. Instead she closed the window quickly, and pulled off her pyjamas and dressing gown to reveal some strange looking clothes underneath. She put on a matching hat and picked up her small backpack and left the room. She ran quickly down the stairs and out of the front door, heading in the direction that Batman had gone, pulling out a strange looking device from her backpack as she did.
She ran noiselessly through the back streets, looking intently at the device in her hand. In due course she stopped and hid in the shadows, because just around the corner was the Batmobile.
The cast murmured uneasily and Lark nudged Dana. "Don't worry, we are all looking out for each other now." She whispered reassuringly.
"Anyway on to our first technical rehearsal. We have all the lighting and staging set up ready for a first rehearsal." Miss McCracken indicated the elaborate set on the stage and impressive light rig. "We won't do the lighting check until next week when we have the dress rehearsals. Your costumes are ready by the way."
This caused a lot of excitement among the cast, which eventually simmered down. "So let us start with the dancers. Get into your positions on stage for the opening number, and try not to fall over any of the set!"
The dancers ran into position. Lark took her place at the back of the hall. At the start of the dance she had to make her way up the aisle doing cartwheels, flips and handsprings. The aim of this was that she would end up on the stage just as the music really kicked in and she led the dancers for the first number.
As the music began slowly Lark began making her way forward, somersaulting and cart wheeling her way forwards. Suddenly she stopped dead.
"Cut! What is wrong?" Miss McCracken asked irritably.
"Someone had better put a chair over this bit of floor." Lark said. She ran a finger down it. "Someone has put grease on the floor, someone could have a nasty accident."
"Namely you." Lark whispered in Lark's ear as she brought a chair over and placed it over the grease patch. "If you had cart wheeled over that you would have gone flying, probably broken an arm or something."
"I know." Lark stood up and stuffed a tissue in her pocket.
"Right, skip the dance number. Lets move on to the next scene, Dracula and his assistant with the Night Queen." Miss McCracken sat down again as Lark, Stuart and a boy called Sam took their places on the stage.
After about half an hour of intense acting the three teenagers were getting tired. Whilst they were waiting for Miss McCracken to sort out a problem with bookings for seat they talked.
"Doesn't this whole idea of a potential murderer scare you two?" Sam asked.
"No, we just have to stay alert." Lark replied.
"I agree with you Sam. This guy will do anything to stop this play from happening." Agreed Stuart.
"From the top guys!" Miss McCracken called. They took their positions. As Stuart and Sam began reading their lines Lark's attention drifted. She started gazing around and looking at the amazing lighting rig. One light in particular caught her eye. It was red and positioned right above the stage. But something about it was wrong. As Lark looked on she saw it distinctly wobble.
"Sam, look out!" She screamed. Sam looked above his head to see the big light wobble and fall from its perch. Lark made to run over to him, but Stuart got there before her. Just in time he pushed Sam out of the way so that the light crashed to the ground on the spot where Sam had been standing. Sam lay on the ground shivering, staring at the shattered light.
"Oh my God!" He whispered.
"Sam, are you OK?" Miss McCracken rushed over to him.
"Yeah, thanks to Stuart here." Sam gasped.
"It was nothing." Stuart shrugged.
"Well, if everyone is OK then we shall continue with the rehearsal." Miss McCracken said.
"What?" Sam asked.
"The show must go on after all." She added.
"No way!" Sam shook his head as he got to his feet. "I'm not risking my life just to be in some stupid show. I quit." He left the hall immediately. A few people around him nodded, saying, "This is too dangerous." In total five people left the room, leaving Miss McCracken standing on the stage.
"Fine." She said. "Then we will just adjust the dance to make it for less people. And Kurt, you will have to take over as Dracula's assistant."
The rest of the cast returned to rehearsing, but all of them were noticeably jumpy about standing under lights.
"It was lucky someone wasn't killed." Batman said to Lark later. He was once again in her bedroom, sitting on her bed as she explained what had happened in detail.
"Two attempts in one rehearsal, this is getting serious." Lark said. She put her hand in her pocket and pulled out the tissue. "I got a sample of the grease, but I doubt that it will help."
Batman took the tissue. "You never know." He pocketed the tissue and the half full bottle of water.
He got up and crossed to the window. "Keep up the good work. I'll see you soon, but I hope I won't if you see what I mean." He left as quickly as he had come.
But this time Lark did not watch him fly out of sight. Instead she closed the window quickly, and pulled off her pyjamas and dressing gown to reveal some strange looking clothes underneath. She put on a matching hat and picked up her small backpack and left the room. She ran quickly down the stairs and out of the front door, heading in the direction that Batman had gone, pulling out a strange looking device from her backpack as she did.
She ran noiselessly through the back streets, looking intently at the device in her hand. In due course she stopped and hid in the shadows, because just around the corner was the Batmobile.
