Ballerina Princess
The Ballerina Princess
was made especially for
Courtney Smith
Age 9
with love from
Grandma and Grandpa Smith
~ Page 4 ~
Springtime in
Courtney and her good friends Emma and Jennifer couldn’t wait to see what part they
were going to play. Miss Beth would soon
assign parts to everyone for this year’s performance of “The Ballerina
Princess.”
Page 5 and Page 6 - Illustration Pages
~ Page 7 ~
The ballet was filled
with dancing parts for birds, flowers, insects and butterflies.
"There will be more exciting parts this year," said Miss Beth. "The lead role of the Ballerina
Princess will be assigned to a visiting professional ballerina."
~ Page 8 ~
Courtney,
Emma and Jennifer
worked very hard practicing their pirouettes, plies, jumps and turns for this
special ballet.
Page 9 and Page 10 - Illustration Pages
~ Page 11 ~
They watched
themselves in the mirrors as they performed their exercises while carefully
stretching their legs, backs and necks so they would stand tall and
straight. Courtney practiced very hard
because she hoped that one day she would be performing as the lead
ballerina. Courtney watched all of the
lead ballerina’s movements with special interest.
~ Page 12 ~
Emma watched what Courtney was doing and teased her about it. Emma asked Courtney,
"Why do you practice the lead ballerina’s part as well as your own?"
"Because next year I hope to be the Ballerina Princess," Courtney answered.
"If I practice all year, next spring I will be ready for the part."
Page 13 and Page 14 - Illustration Pages
~ Page 15 ~
Emma and
Jennifer saw
what Courtney was doing and began kidding her
about it. Emma asked Courtney, “Why do you practice the lead ballerina’s
movements as well as your own?”
“Because next year I
hope to be the Ballerina Princess,” Courtney answered.
“By knowing the movements I can practice all year. Next spring I will be
ready for the part.”
~ Page 16 ~
Next it was Emma's turn. She performed one
pirouette after another without once losing her balance or getting dizzy. Then Courtney went through a short routine they had learned
in class. She especially impressed Miss Beth
with her graceful arabesque and the way she kept her toes so perfectly pointed.
Miss Beth was very proud of all her
students. It was obvious that everyone had been practicing very hard at home.
"We are going to have a wonderful spring performance because all of you
dance so well," she told them.
Page 17 and Page 18 - Illustration Pages
~ Page 19 ~
Then she announced the
roles for the dancers as she showed the costumes they would be wearing.
Everyone already knew the Ballerina Princess would be played this year by a
former student who had become a famous ballerina. Courtney
and Emma would be butterflies. Jennifer would be a blue bird and another one of the
girls would play the role of a caterpillar. All the dancers were happy about
their parts as they left for the day.
~ Page 20 ~
That night, all the
little dancers called their families and friends to invite them to attend the
performance. Courtney called Grandma and Grandpa Smith.
Page 21 and Page 22 - Illustration Pages
~ Page 23 ~
Each afternoon Courtney, Emma and Jennifer
joined the other dancers to rehearse their roles for the upcoming recital.
Everyone worked hard to learn their parts and Courtney
continued to practice the part of the Ballerina Princess.
~ Page 24 ~
The weeks went by very
quickly. On the day before the performance, they gathered for dress rehearsal.
The lead ballerina entered the studio looking very pale. Suddenly, the lead
ballerina sneezed. She sneezed again and again.
Miss Beth stepped over and asked,
"What is the problem?"
"I think I am coming down with the flu," said the lead ballerina.
"I'm very sad because I don’t want to let everyone down and there is no
time for anyone to learn my part."
Page 25 and Page 26 - Illustration Pages
~ Page 27 ~
A hush came over the
class as Miss Beth exclaimed, "What in the
world can we do?" Just then Jennifer
shouted, "But Miss Beth, Courtney knows all the moves of the Ballerina
Princess. She has practiced them every night on her own." All eyes turned
to Courtney.
~ Page 28 ~
"Is that correct,
Courtney?" asked Miss
Beth.
"Yes, it
is," replied Courtney, a little embarrassed
by the attention but happy at the same time. "I have practiced every night
in hopes that by next year I would be chosen as the Ballerina Princess."
"Well, Courtney," said Miss Beth,
"you now have the part of the Ballerina Princess!" For the rest of
the day the dress rehearsal continued with Courtney
in the lead. There was one less butterfly in the garden, but everyone was happy
to spend the extra time to work on the changes.
Page 29 and Page 30 - Illustration Pages
~ Page 31 ~
The big day finally
arrived. Courtney's performance was perfect. The
entire crowd full of family and friends gave a standing ovation to the dancers.
Courtney, Emma
and the other girls in the dance curtsied as flowers were brought onto the
stage.
~ Page 32 ~
Courtney was the heroine of the night and
the star performer in the ballet. All of her hard work and practice had paid
off! What an unforgettable day this was . . . the day Courtney
became The Ballerina Princess.
The End