Bantam13 Learns a Dance, Part Two

This show has really been a stretch for Bantam13--as you may recall from this post. He's always been cast as one of the younger kids until this show, for one thing--but after his amazing growth spurt of the past year, he's a little kid no longer. And he's never had to learn anything as physically challenging as the swing dancing lifts and tricks! He says it's the hardest show he's ever done, but he knows the challenge is something he'll always look back on as a landmark event: "Like hiking the Grand Canyon with Dad just before I turned thirteen."

Yep--it's been that significant.

So here he is with his partner in a few light-hearted moments in their big number, the grand finale of the first act, "Gravity":

(Please ignore the ghost in the background. This was a dress rehearsal and they didn't quite have the lighting down!)


And here's the trick that he could never quite manage with his partner, so he gets a lighter girl just for this one, the "star":


(The couple in the back are an unsuccessful step behind, so you get an idea of what it takes to get her up that far!)

Then there's the square-dancing number, "Elbow Room."

(Tuck in your shirt, Bantam13! He does now.)

Finally, this shot is a little dark, but he's wearing a cape for this number, "My Hero Zero." Doesn't he look heroic?

Though all our kids have learned so much and had a great time doing this show, Bantam13 is the family hero!

***

At Wednesday night's dress rehearsal, B13 dropped his partner--twice. Once was bad enough, but twice--ouch. In more ways than one. She was not happy with him.

The next morning, on the way to the first school day performance, he asked if I could pray for him. We do that, out loud, in the car, on the way to auditions and shows and other times when the tension is high. Later on, after a flawless performance, he told me he knew that prayer had made a big difference. "Some random mom came up to me and told me that last night, she had trouble sleeping, and every time she woke up, she was praying for me. Can you believe that?" he asked me.

I met the "random mom" later on; when we were telling each other who our kids were, she said, "Oh, I was praying for your son! I didn't even know his name, but I felt so bad for him at the dress rehearsal."

How cool is that? Thank you, Lord!!

(And after the third show today--with no flubs in their performance--his partner was so happy, she hugged him!)