Jade and the Silver Flute

To Phoebe and Zoe, as they are the inspiration behind Magic Ballerina.

Welcome to the world of Enchantia!

I have always loved to dance. The captivating music and wonderful stories of ballet are so inspiring. So come with me and let’s follow Jade on her magical adventures in Enchantia, where the stories of dance will take you on a very special journey.

p.s. Turn to the back to learn a special dance step from me…

Jade took a deep breath and let herself go, dancing with all her heart. But even as she moved, she knew she wasn’t expressing the music properly. Her feet had too much bounce in them, her wrists had too much flick in them and her arms had too much stretch in them.

She looked up at her ballet teacher, Madame Za-Za. “Sorry, it wasn’t really ballet dancing, was it?” said Jade, biting her lip.

Madame Za-Za nodded. “You are quite correct, Jade, it was not.”

A silence, which seemed to fill every corner of the small studio at Madame Za-Za’s School of Ballet, followed her comment. Jade sighed. She’d come to this audition for the end of term show wanting to dance her very best and now she’d messed it up. The solo she’d chosen was one that Beauty did in the ballet of Beauty and the Beast. She knew the dance was supposed to be smooth and serene and she’d started off well. But then after no time at all, she’d found herself doing what came naturally to her – making it a bit more energetic and free. A bit more street. Street dance had always been Jade’s favourite type of dancing until she’d discovered ballet. Now, though, she loved them both.

Madame Za-Za’s dark eyes were fixed on her. “You don’t always have to jazz everything up to enjoy the dance, you know,” she said softly. “You’ll find a way.”

Jade nodded. “I just couldn’t help myself,” she said, her eyes coming to rest on her red ballet shoes. Immediately she felt a shiver of excitement run through her that made everything seem all right. It was always the same when she looked at her amazing shoes. They were magic and had the power to whisk her away to Enchantia – a land where the characters from all the different ballets lived. Jade had been there twice already and had the most amazing adventures with her new friend the White Cat. But she shouldn’t be thinking about that now. She should be concentrating on her teacher.

Madame Za-Za was bending gracefully to get something from her bag – a scarf, as fine and floaty as a feather. She held it lightly as she talked to Jade. “Sometimes it is appropriate to bring a lively bouncing energy to a dance,” she said, “but with Beauty’s solo, it is definitely not. This is a smooth pure classical solo. It needs soft expressive movements.”

Jade knew that everything her teacher was saying was true. She knew the story well and was enchanted by the tale of the handsome and kindly prince who had a terrible curse put on him by a witch – a curse that had turned him into a monstrous-looking beast. And of Beauty, the girl who had broken it.

Thinking about that now, Jade knew she hadn’t got that across in her dancing. How could she have let herself dance so sharply? She was about to ask if she could start again when another pupil knocked on the door and then asked Madame Za-Za to come to the larger dance studio.

“I will be back in a moment, Jade,” said Madame Za-Za making for the door. She held the scarf out. “Take this. It will help you give a softer quality to your dance, Jade. See how lightly it shimmers!”

As she let go of the scarf, Jade watched it float its way gently and slowly to the ground. By the time Madame Za-Za had left the room the scarf had settled right beside Jade’s feet.

Bending down to pick it up, she felt a wave of excitement flood through her. Her shoes were glowing! A tingle began in her toes and started to move through her whole body. Jade’s eyes lit up as the tingle went down her arms to her fingertips. A cloud of hazy colours began to swirl around her growing more and more bright and vibrant.

Yes, it’s really happening, Jade grinned. It’s really happening again. They’re taking me to Enchantia!