Act 2 (Jack & Louisa) by Andrew Keenan-bolger, Kate Wetherhead

staring straight ahead, raising her eyebrows and cycling through a series of smirks, apparently solidifying her acting beats, as well.
    “Which is why it’s called a
bladder pipe
,” Mr. Hennessy warbled, causing me to snap back to attention. “Because the wind reservoir containing the reed was actually made out of an animal’s bladder.”
    I looked around the room. Silence. Even a teacher speaking of digestive tracts couldn’t break the pre-audition trance of our class. Like a well-timed stage manager cue, the door to the music room swung open, and in popped a haystack of red hair.
    “Hey, Frank,” Belinda said as she made her entrance. Suddenly the class perked up. It was astonishing how quickly the energy of a room changed when Belinda Grier walked into it.
    “Mind if I take the last few minutes to chat with the kids about the auditions today?”
    “Well, I was just—” Mr. Hennessy mumbled, gesturing to his worksheet.
    “Thanks, darlin’,” Belinda said, cutting him off and strutting to the center of the classroom. Mr. Hennessy shrugged, reaching for his weathered old briefcase.
    “So, as many of you know, the acting and singing auditions for
Guys and Dolls
will take place at three thirty in the auditorium,” she said as she sat down on the edge of the desk. She flicked one leg up and crossed it over her knee. “Everyone will get a chance to sing thirty-two bars of the audition cut that I posted online, but first, I’ll be breaking you up into pairs to read with each other.”
    I looked over at Lou, and we shared a smile. Even with the soccer boys, it seemed pretty inevitable that Belinda would pair us together. After all, she had referred to us as her minions.
    “First we’ll be reading the Skys and Sarahs, followed by the Nathans and Adelaides, and lastly the Hot Box Girls and other gangsters.”
    Oh good
, I thought. At least I’d have a round of auditions to skim through the sides one more time.
    “If you haven’t already, please contact your parents after school to let them know thatauditions will be running
late
,” she said, drawing out the
l
in
late
for dramatic effect.
    “We have far more people auditioning than expected, and I want to give everyone a chance to prove themselves. Please come vocally warmed up and prepared to jump right in,” Belinda said, hopping off the table. “I’ll see you guys at three thirty. Oh, and Jack,” she said, looking over at me. “Would you mind hanging back for a second? I want to speak with you about something.”
    My pulse quickened.
    “Uh, sure thing.” I nodded confidently.
    The bell let out its lunchtime cry and everyone jolted to their feet, cramming their worksheets into their backpacks.
    What could Belinda want to talk to me about?
I wondered. Between impromptu performances, jaw-dropping anecdotes, and the seeming ability to make an entire soccer team materialize, I’d learned to expect the unexpected from this woman. I looked over at Lou, who packed up her bag slowly.
    “She doesn’t want to talk to me, too?” she muttered.
    “I don’t know,” I replied. “What do you think it’s about?”
    Lou gave me a shrug and walked to the door.
    “See you in the lunchroom,” she called back, disappearing into the stream of hungry middle-schoolers. I looked over at Belinda, who was already looking at me with a syrupy smile.
    “Thanks for staying to have a chitchat,” she said, walking around the table and grabbing a chair. “Here, take a seat. Okay if you hang here for a minute? You only have lunch, right?”
    “Yeah,” I said, lowering myself into the chair.
    “Great!” she exclaimed, sitting down in the chair across from me. “Since day one I’ve wanted a chance to talk shop with you. You know, pro to pro. I remember thinking on that first day,
What a crazy coincidence, getting to share a classroom with another Broadway baby
.”
    “Totally.” I smiled politely.
    “I was so tickled watching you take charge yesterday and help