Finally Free

17

S O P H I A | a nice email from your teacher

Maddie laughs as I tell her what happened in English class while we walk into the auditorium. "It's bad. I know." I'm regretting bringing it up but I needed to vent. "As much as I loathe Carter this has been really interesting to witness." She giggles. I punch her arm.

When we got into the auditorium there were only about five other people in there. We sit in some audience chairs and study the acting sides.

I don't even have to look up to know that Eloise just walked into the room. Her presence has that apex predator effect. This is going to be quite a show.

After about five more minutes a girl with dark skin and the most beautiful curls I've ever seen sits directly in front of us. She has chocolate eyes and is wearing a purple top with a black jean skirt.

"Hi I'm Kia Torres, I'm auditioning for Rizzo."

"I'm Sophia Carrington, auditioning for Sandy."

"Nice to meet you, just wanted to introduce myself to you, good luck." I say the same back. She takes a seat in front of us.

She seems nice. At this point the auditorium has about 50 kids in it. An old lady bursts into the room. She has light brown skin, and her hair is wrapped in a headscarf. She's wearing an assortment of colorful clothing.

"Hello everyone, welcome to this year's auditions." Her voice commands the room immediately. We all clap. "For those of you who don't know me, my name is Josephine Howard, your fabulous director. As you know Grease is an iconic musical that requires a lot of commitment and attention, depending on your role you can have rehearsal everyday or just the usual, every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday."

Damn that's a lot. It's my usual commitment though for theater. "Quick vocal warm up then all of you can sit on the stage and wait for your turn." We all sing the warmups and take a seat on the stage.

I breathe. I close my eyes for 5 seconds. Maddie squeezes my hand, then we are collectively breathing together. "Kia Torres." She gets up excitedly. She does pretty well, and I make sure to let her know that when she's finished. She gives me a grateful smile.

"Gavin Parker." He pops his collar and winks at me when he stands up. It reminds me of Carter but he doesn't pull me in the same way. "Hi, I'm Gavin Parker, I'm auditioning for the role of Danny." Gavin carries himself well in front of a crowd and he's really good. Oddly good for someone as cocky as him. About five other people go before Maddie goes up. I give her a quick squeeze on her hand.

She messed up about halfway through the song but otherwise she killed it. Right after Maddie was Eloise.

She goes up, does that suck up sweet girl look for the directors. "Hello everyone, I'm Eloise Miller, I'm auditioning for Sandy and I'll be singing "Hopelessly Devoted to You" from our very own Grease." Bad Idea. Rule number one of musical theater, never sing a song from the musical you're auditioning for unless the director asks you to. That's like the cardinal rule.

Oh my god she's awful. I look around the room and see the look on everyone's face. It varies from concern, stifled laughter, or what can only be described as what the actual fuck? She's really tone deaf. "It sounds like a cat died then came back to life, then died again." Maddie whispers. I try not to laugh.

"Thank you very much Eloise." Ms. Howard hesitates uncomfortably.

"Sophia Carrington." Here we go. This is what I've been preparing for. When the music starts, I close my eyes and begin. The lyrics come straight from my soul, just like I've practiced a thousand times. It's never ending. This song describes how I'm feeling with Carter.