A
feeling of excitement comes over me that is so strong it causes tightness in my
chest. Finally I can no longer hold in the pure thrill that is overcoming me
and a smile crosses my face. I run and hug my mom, giddily laughing all the
while. My cheeks begin to ache from the joy that is plastered all over my face.
My mom laughs and lets me go. She’s smiling too.
After
attending only one summer at Stagedoor Manor Performing Arts Center, I have
been invited to join them in representing their best performers in the Macy’s
Thanksgiving Day Parade.
 |
| Lexis Danca in the 84th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade |
“We’re
leaving in three weeks,” my mom begins, “and you have some work to do before we
get there. Here’s the music and the lyrics that you’ll have to have memorized,”
she says as she hands me a C.D. labeled “Need a Little Christmas” and a sheet
of paper. “Oh, look! There’s also a layout of what the float will look like!
Office Depot is sponsoring it… they’re probably building it as we speak.” I
crane my neck over her shoulder and examine the 2 dimensional parade float that
I cannot wait to see come to life. It consists of three levels. The lowest
level will feature two tap dancers, the middle level will have three hip-hop
dancers, and at the very top there is room for two ballet dancers. A wave of
exhilaration rushes through me again; ballet is my forte.
“So
there will only be seven featured dancers on the actual float. The rest will
just walk beside it,” I say pensively. I decide immediately that I have to be
on the float. That is what I’ve dreamt of. I cannot let this opportunity slip
away.
It’s
a month later and I step into in airport practically 900 miles from home. I had
listened intently to the remixed version of “Need a Little Christmas” that I’ll
be dancing to and studied the lyrics, the whole time I was on the plane.
After
a day of adjusting to the intense New York City rush, and a night of
ridiculously difficult and exhausting rehearsals to learn the main routine that
will be performed on the Macy’s star on NBC, we receive exciting news. Larry, the director, announces that tomorrow
will be the day that they will choose the few people who will be given the
chance to perform on the float itself.
The
next morning I’m up and at ‘em. I eat breakfast on the go, arrive at a studio,
and I rehearse tirelessly, focusing harder than I have in a long time. Larry sees
me, and smiles. I see him whispering to another director next to him. They both
are staring at me. I keep doing the routine trying not to let it distract me. I
need to show them that I am top-of-the-float material. Sweat drips down my
brows but I leave it. My calves are burning but I continue to dance away. I
notice that there are people really struggling with the routine behind me and I
feel guilty that it gives me boost of confidence, but that’s a performer’s
state of mind in competitive situations, I suppose. My dance partner from the
previous summer at Stagedoor, Ian, is there with me.
“I’m
so anxious,” I whisper to Ian.
“Yeah,
but I wouldn’t worry if I were you,” he says with a grin. “Honestly, I think we
both have a great chance of being the two ballet dancers on the float.” I
shrug, take a deep breath, and continue practicing.
The
end of the day comes quickly. I’ve done my best at the routine and I feel
butterflies in my stomach as I walk past Larry. “Thank you, Larry,” I say
casually.
“Lexis,”
he begins. I immediately snap around. “You’ll be on the top of the float on the
ballet platform with Ian. We’ll start working on the partnering choreography
tomorrow. Get some rest tonight.” And that’s it. He says it that simply. I did
it.
 |
| Lexis and Ian Nelson at the VIP gates before the parade |
The
next two days are harder than the first. By the last night, my muscles are sore
and I can hardly keep my eyes open as I stumble into my hotel room. I groggily
get my costume out of the closet- a green velvet elf costume. I lay it out and
roll into bed. I have to meet my group at five o’clock in the morning on the
parade grounds. Suddenly I find it difficult to fall asleep as anxiousness
overwhelms me. I think about what tomorrow will be like. I pray that I won’t
forget my routines and that I’ll have the energy to dance for three hours
straight along the parade route without any breaks. In the midst of all of this
thought, though, I manage to fall asleep.
The
morning comes much too soon, but as soon as I hear that alarm, my eyes pop open
and I’m ready. I’m ready to really do what I’ve wanted to do for so long.
“This
is just a dream come true for you, isn’t it?” my mom asks.
“Oh,
you have no idea,” I chuckle.
We
make our way to the parade grounds I am given a VIP pass. I feel so special.
There are already people camped out behind yellow tape. It’s odd for me to be
on the other side of the tape for once…but I love it. We wait hours after
getting to our float. Ian and I converse as we stay huddled up at the top
platform.
“This
is so surreal,” I say bluntly.
“Just
wait, it gets better,” he beams. He had been a part of the parade the year
before as well.
Boy,
was he right. The float finally begins to move, and we all take our positions.
We turn a corner and I feel the shock come over me. I begin moving, jumping
clapping, and waving. I look out and I don’t see any pavement, only a sea of
happy people. I look up and there are people hanging out of windows! Children
wave eagerly at me, hoping that I’ll wave back. As soon as I do, they tug on
their mother’s jacket and point at me, Santa’s elf. I repeat the same movements
over and over but I don’t feel myself getting tired. I realize that I have
never felt this much adrenaline pumping through me. Every once in a while I
catch Ian’s glance and he nods, eyebrows raised, eyes wide, with a huge smile.
I nod and smile back. Pictures are constantly being taken of us as we pass. I
find it funny that I’ll be in so many people’s photo albums.
“Antony
just shouted up at me,” Ian says. Antony is our technical director. “He said
that there are at least four and a half million people watching us right now!”
I shake my head in disbelief. This is real and I’m trying so hard to take
snapshots in my mind of every moment. I’m still finding it difficult to wrap my
mind around this entire experience. I continue to blow kisses and kick my leg
up to my ear, seeing a different face light up with every one of my moves. I
don’t want this to end and I know that this will never happen again. Better
live it up, I think to myself. And I do just that.
We
turn another corner and as quickly as it began, it is over. I stop moving.
Despair, and happiness rush through me.
“It
felt nothing like three hours,” I laugh as I hug Ian. I see my mom and
grandparents waiting for me at the exit. I run to them and I’m enveloped in
hugs. “That was the greatest thing I’ve ever done,” I say.
Two years later, here I am. I sit eagerly in
the wings of the huge stage at Kirkland Fine Arts Center. I grip my black binder
that holds my music and realize my hands are shaking. It’s my first audition as
a student at Millikin University. I need to impress the directors; the
directors who are also my professors.
I’ve
worked for this moment all summer and now it’s my chance to show them what I’m
capable of. Why am I so nervous? I try to calm myself down. I tell myself I’m
prepared. I begin to think about the Macy’s Parade.
“If
I could get up in front of millions of people and give it my all, I can surely
do it now,” I think to myself. I take a
deep breath and I feel my skin prickle. I take a confident step out onto the
vast, unfamiliar stage, look straight out into the audience and smile.
“Hello,
my name is Lexis Danca and I will be performing a song and a monologue for you
today.”
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