The Audition Part 4 Folies Bergere

At this point there were only about 30 dancers left. Laura asked us to proceed to stage left. As we lined up one by one, the dancers all seemed to know what to expect, except me. I moved myself to the middle of the line, so I could watch the dancers ahead of me. I needed to see what they were doing for the walk. As I watched each dancer make her move onto the stage, I became more aware of this "Showgirl Walk." I was up next following a line of seasoned dancers. My long gazelle legs fell into step and glided effortlessly across the stage and back. There were no interruptions of the sequence from stage left too right and back. The stage was literally so large, it took about 2 mins to cross individually. I know that sounds hard to imagine, but it was very specific. After about 30 minutes with all of us being called to center stage once again. Eliminations were about to happen. About 10 dancers were dismissed just like that. I was not.

We took a breather as the line captain Laura conversed with the producer and other noble executives.

20 dancers left. The finale. The high kicks. We were positioned center stage and Laura showed us what she expected us to perform. 4 high kicks to the front with a swing through to the right with another 4 high kicks, back to front repeat and to the left back to front. She explained this was a serious of kicks from the finale Can Can. One of the most popular dance numbers in the show. Of course I had seen the show twice and loved the Can Can! She did point out that there would be no music for this part of the audition, it was just so they could see how high and fast we could kick.

We were in groups of 5. I was in the first group. I did notice a few of the dancers couldn't get their legs high enough over their shoulders. And definitely not with the speed and agility they expected. I had the flexibility of a 'Gumby Doll.'  My body was a bit hyper-extended, which gave me an advantage right from the start.

As soon as we were all done Laura told us all to take a 15 minute break so they had a chance to decide on their final picks.

Longest 15 minutes I ever felt.