On Pointe (11 page)

“Thank you—for your wonderful Divas and for saving the day,” he told her.

Toni curtsied and kissed him on the cheek. She waved to the audience and was not at all surprised to see that Justine's seat in the front row was now empty.

“I hope we didn't drive her too nuts,” she told her girls, with a wink.

After a weekend of wonderful performances, the Divas were sad to see
A New Jersey Nutcracker
end. The area thawed out, and audiences filled the theater to capacity for both the Sunday and Monday shows during the holiday break. The
Times
dance critic called the ballet “a luminous production” and in particular, mentioned “a darling debut by Gracie Borden as Clara, who brought youthful exuberance to the role.”

“What's an exuber-dance?” she asked her mom.

“It means you lit up the stage,” her mother replied, chuckling. “I'm getting this review framed and putting it up in your room.”

Miss Toni gave the girls a mere two days to rest up and recover from the shows. When they came to dance class at four o'clock on Thursday, it was back to business as usual.

“Hang up your toe shoes, Divas,” she told her team. “
The Nutcracker
is history, and we're back to competing. Or have you all forgotten what it's like to go head-to-head with Justine and City Feet?”

The girls shook their heads. They hadn't forgotten and they fully expected Addison and her fellow Feet to try and get even for everything that went down during
Nutcracker
.

“We're traveling to Maryland right after the new year for the Sweet Feet competition,” Toni explained. “I have the group number all planned out. It's called ‘Chip and Dip' and each of you is going to be a giant chocolate chip cookie.”

Liberty's jaw fell. “A cookie? Seriously? Wasn't playing a gingerbread dancer torture enough?”

“Well, after you tortured Gracie during
Nutcracker
, I'd say you're getting your just desserts,” Rochelle said, teasing her.

“I haven't decided on solos yet,” Toni
continued. “But I do know we'll be having a guest join us.” The door opened and Olivier walked in, decked out in a red velvet fedora for the holidays.

“Yay! Olivi-yay!” Gracie cheered. “Are you going to be my duet partner?”

“No, you and Liberty are going to be doing a duet,” her teacher said without looking up from her clipboard. “I think you actually made a very good team.”

Scarlett waited to see if Gracie—or Liberty for that matter—was going to freak.

“K-dokey,” Liberty said, winking at Gracie. “Martian twins reunited!”

Miss Toni looked satisfied. “I just want to say how proud I am of all of you,” she commented. “And I have a little gift for you for the holidays.”

“You're giving us the rest of the week off?” Rochelle asked hopefully.

“No. Nice try. I'm bringing in a guest choreographer to work with you while I go visit my family upstate,” Toni said. She waved at the studio door and Marcus walked in.

Gracie ran over to hug him. “I thought I'd never see you again!” she said.

“I understand we have a competition to win,” Marcus said, taking a seat at the front of the studio.

“Are you sure you're okay about going up against Justine?” Rochelle asked.

Marcus smiled. “Bring it on.”

He stood up and had the entire team line up in front of him.

“Okay, gang, let's get crackin'!”

Arabesque:
a move where the dancer stands on one leg with the other leg extended behind her at 90 degrees.

Balancé:
a three-step motion, usually “down, up, down” (
fondu, relevé, fondu
).

Ballonné:
a ball-like or bouncing step. The dancer springs into the air extending one leg to the front, side, or back and lands with the extended leg.

Barre:
the wooden bar in the ballet studio that a dancer holds on to with one or both hands to practice/balance.

Coupé:
exchanging weight from one leg to another through a closed position.

Changement:
it means “changing.” A jump in which the feet change positions in the air.

Choreographer:
the person who creates the dance, deciding on the steps and order of movements.

Pas de deux:
a duet.

Piqué:
a movement where the pointed toe of the lifted and extended leg sharply lowers to hit the floor, then immediately bounces up.

Pirouette:
a turn on one leg with the other leg behind.

Plié:
a bend of the knees with hips, legs, and feet turned out.

Pointe shoes/on pointe:
ballet shoes that allow dancers to stand on the tip of their toes; on the tip of the toe.

Prima ballerina assoluta:
a rare title given to the greatest female ballet dancers. A very famous ballerina known around the world.

Sauté:
a jump using one or two legs.

Tour chaînés/chaînés:
a series of quick complete rotation turns on alternating feet moving in a straight line or circle.

Many, many thanks to …

My beautiful ballerina, Carrie, for always inspiring me with her grace, dedication, and brilliance. Dance like no one is watching!

My husband, Peter—this is what I've been doing at my desk every day! Thanks for putting up with my crazy deadlines. XO

Dances Patrelle for its breathtaking Yorkville
Nutcracker
. Francis, you've given our “Nut kids” and all of NYC an amazing gift. We've loved being a part of it for the past six years and hope for many more to come!

Anne Kelly, Maureen Duke: you take such great care of our kids and teach them to soar! Thanks for your help, always!

Zenmommy and her trio of terrific dancers, Bri, Sophie, and Tristan! Nuggie, Olivier is for you!!!!

Madison Heller and family: we'll miss you in L.A.! Keep dancing and following your dreams!

All the teachers and staff at Ballet Academy East for your love and support—hard to believe it's been ten years of ballet classes for Carrie!!!

My agents Frank Weimann and Katherine Latshaw at Folio, and the wonderful team at Bloomsbury, especially Brett Wright (who makes every revision fun and easy!) and Cindy Loh. Couldn't have done Dance Divas without you.

Sheryl Berk
is a proud ballet mom and a
New York Times
bestselling author. She has collaborated with numerous celebrities on their memoirs, including Britney Spears,
Glee
's Jenna Ushkowitz, and
Shake It Up
's Zendaya. Her book with Bethany Hamilton,
Soul Surfer
, hit #1 on the
New York Times
bestseller list and became a major motion picture. She is also the author of The Cupcake Club book series with her daughter, Carrie.

Showtime!

Two to Tango

Let's Rock!

Step It Up

On Pointe

Showstopper

(coming soon)

Copyright © 2014 by Sheryl Berk

All rights reserved.
You may not copy, distribute, transmit, reproduce, or otherwise make available this publication (or any part of it) in any form, or by any means (including without limitation electronic, digital, optical, mechanical, photocopying, printing, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorized act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

First published in the United States of America in December 2014
by Bloomsbury Children's Books
Electronic edition published in December 2014
www.bloomsbury.com

Bloomsbury is a registered trademark of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to
Permissions, Bloomsbury Children's Books, 1385 Broadway, New York, New York 10018

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Berk, Sheryl.
On pointe / by Sheryl Berk.
pages     cm     — (Dance Divas)
Summary: Anya, Liberty, and Scarlett all think they'll be a shoo-in for the lead role of Clara in Dances Minnelli's annual production of
The Nutcracker
, but Gracie gets the part—and the pressure—while the others must be content with supporting roles.
[1. Ballet dancing—Fiction. 2. Dance—Fiction. 3. Interpersonal relations—Fiction. 4. Dance teams—Fiction. 5. Nutcracker (Choreographic work)—Fiction.] I. Title.
PZ7.B45236On 2014           [Fic]—dc23           2014022842

eISBN: 978-1-61963-587-6

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