Finding My Spotlight

Written by: Sapphire Faerie

Maureen stood in the shadows of the theatre's backstage.  Her heart was pounding with nerves.  She gripped the script tightly in a tight roll in her left hand.  Though she really didn't need it, she knew this part like back of her hand.

Glancing briefly at her watch, she began pacing back and forth across the space she'd claimed as her own for the time being.  There wasn't much to see.  Pieces of old sets propped along one wall, a couple of small chairs, and quite a bit of dust.  But the smell screamed of the stage.  She loved that smell, it made her feel like home.

Maureen looked around.  There were others here to audition, and though no one was in costume, she could tell just by looking at them who yearned for which roles.  She herself was going for the lead.  There really was but one real female part in this musical.  Maureen wanted to be a star.

She glanced at her watch.  The first of the auditions had begun.  She was several names down on the list, and so she waited patiently.  Standing on the other side of the curtain, she could clearly hear the girls ahead of her singing.  It only increased her anxiety.

"Calm down,"  She whispered to herself.  "Even if you don't get the lead, they'll give you something.  It'll be ok." But deep down she knew it wouldn't be.  It would never be the same. She yearned for this part so badly.  She felt as though she was born to play it.

The musical was Evita, and many of the girls ahead of her had opted to sing Don't Cry For Me Argentina.  But Maureen, ever the rebel, had chosen to sing Rainbow High.  One advantage of Rainbow High was that it had more depth, and would give her more chances to move about as she sang.

Maureen's name was being called from the other side of the curtain.  The moment of truth had arrived.  She dropped her script on the nearest chair.  She didn't need it, and she would not carry it out there and look like she didn't know what she was doing.

As she stepped through the gap in the curtain, she had to squint and blink several times.  The lights were so much brighter than what her eyes had grown accustomed to backstage.  She could barely see past the footlights, but she could tell that there were five people sitting down in the 5th row.

A small X made of white tape marked center stage.  She stepped over to it, and took a breath.  Somehow singing for five people was harder than singing for 500 would be.  She nodded toward where she knew the sound booth was, though she couldn't see it.

She took a deep breath as the music began, and broke out into song.  She did her best, and managed not to totally ruin it by mixing up the lines or tripping and breaking her neck.

And then the song was over.  Maureen bowed slightly, and exited the stage, slightly out of breath but glad she had done it.  She had hope.  And that hope would get her through the next few weeks while she waited for a callback.