There she was again tonight, bowing ever-so gracefully as she blew kisses towards the audience.
If only they knew, she thought. If only they knew…
The lights went out as the curtain was pulled in. She let out a sigh of relief, slouching her shoulders once more to return to the room behind the stage. Other people ran to quickly dispose of any unnecessary items and fold up the tables and chairs scattered across the black stage. No words were exchanged among them, not even a smile.
She closed the door behind her and sat down, grabbing a makeup wipe and ferociously rubbing off her white face and dark eyes to reveal a sad girl who smiled.
Unfortunately, there was no one else inside the room except for the little puppy who yawned lazily.
Where was she? The girl who wanted to pursue a career in making people laugh and cry, making an audience clap and smile as they watched her dance across the stage and recite the same lines she had rehearsed for months.
There was an emptiness in her that she was unable to shake away no matter how many times she got on that stage in front of a great crowd. Whether she was aware of this or not, the vacancy was eating her alive.
You did so well last night!
What a horrendous show!
She thinks she can act!
Your best performance yet!
The compliments and insults went through her as if she were nothing. She looked up into the mirror, her eyes meeting with the face of a stranger.
What happened to her? That girl, the one who would beg her parents to watch the same play every Saturday. The one who auditioned over and over again, coming ten minutes early to rehearsals every day.
She herself did not know.
She gathered her things and left. She was going to find that girl again.
This was her last performance, the final curtain.
If only they knew, she thought. If only they knew…
The lights went out as the curtain was pulled in. She let out a sigh of relief, slouching her shoulders once more to return to the room behind the stage. Other people ran to quickly dispose of any unnecessary items and fold up the tables and chairs scattered across the black stage. No words were exchanged among them, not even a smile.
She closed the door behind her and sat down, grabbing a makeup wipe and ferociously rubbing off her white face and dark eyes to reveal a sad girl who smiled.
Unfortunately, there was no one else inside the room except for the little puppy who yawned lazily.
Where was she? The girl who wanted to pursue a career in making people laugh and cry, making an audience clap and smile as they watched her dance across the stage and recite the same lines she had rehearsed for months.
There was an emptiness in her that she was unable to shake away no matter how many times she got on that stage in front of a great crowd. Whether she was aware of this or not, the vacancy was eating her alive.
You did so well last night!
What a horrendous show!
She thinks she can act!
Your best performance yet!
The compliments and insults went through her as if she were nothing. She looked up into the mirror, her eyes meeting with the face of a stranger.
What happened to her? That girl, the one who would beg her parents to watch the same play every Saturday. The one who auditioned over and over again, coming ten minutes early to rehearsals every day.
She herself did not know.
She gathered her things and left. She was going to find that girl again.
This was her last performance, the final curtain.
Katya Tjahaja
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