Page 49 of Private Tutoring
24
MATTHEW
What the hell was that?
I pried my thoughts away from Harmony and back to what was happening on stage. Leighona palmed her throat, opened her mouth, and unleashed an ear-rending sound that made me want to clap my hands over my ears.
“Sorry.” She took a step out of the spotlight trained on her and picked up a bottle of water from the stool next to the blackout curtain. “I don’t know what’s wrong.”
She was botching the musical, that was what was wrong. I stood from the seat in the rear of the theater where I’d been watching the minutiae of my students’ movements across the stage.
I’d chosen Leighona as Cosette because she’d presented as a powerhouse in her audition. That powerhouse was going down in a blaze of glory.
“Hold on.” I jumped onto the stage and approached Leighona.
Harmony, Damien, and a few others who’d been working through their lines together looked over. Harmony ducked herhead on her way to the rear of the stage, but a darting glance shot my way.
I had my hands in my pockets, but I wiggled my pinkie finger out and waved it at her.
A grin appeared. She covered it an instant later and turned to talk to Damien.
“Start at the beginning. The lower register.” I tapped my throat. “Then work up the scale. Stop when it becomes too much.”
“I can do it.” Leighona crossed her arms. “I’m just tired. I was up late studying for an exam. I’m always a little hoarse when I don’t get enough sleep.”
Then she must not have been sleeping well for days. Ever since the rehearsals went from light to grueling, she’d been struggling. “This isn’t the first time you’ve had a strained voice. It happened two days ago.”
Her scowl deepened. “I can do it.”
“Show me.” I took a step back, motioning for her to begin.
Grumbling, Leighona took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She winced before the first note emerged, and by the time she hit the middle of the scale, her pitch wavered. The tone peaked, then dropped.
“Stop.” I held up a hand, my eyes closed as I worked through the problem. “You know what this is.”
She jutted her chin out and refused to answer.
“These are warning signs. Voice cracks, the strain. It’s all telling you to take a break. I put off saying anything, hoping it would resolve. Since it hasn’t, I don’t have any choice. You need to take a break.” The words landed in a sudden, intense silence that stretched across the entire theater.
Leighona gasped. “You can’t do that.”
“Yes. I can.” I tried to show some remorse, but there was a part of me that was thrilled at what happened next. “Harmony,I want you to take the lead role of Cosette for a few days.” I pointed at Leighona. “You. Rest your voice.”
“No.” Leighona wrapped a hand around her throat. “You can’t take this away from me.”
“I’m not taking it away.” God, these kids always took everything to heart. “I need you to rest. If you can do that, there’s a very good chance you’ll be ready for opening night.”
That seemed to help calm her down. She snatched the bottle of water tight and guzzled half of it down. “Okay.” Even that simple word rasped worse than a thirty-year chain smoker.
“Okay.” I nodded and held out my hand, turning it palm up and motioning Harmony over with a curl of my fingers. I’d solved the problem for now. Harmony had the range and depth to cover the show. I wouldn’t mind if she took the lead from here on out. “Start from the top.”
Harmony approached Leighona. The two stared each other down to the point I halfway expected Leighona to storm out in a fury. Instead, she put on a giant fake smile and moved to sit on the stool, hooking her heels over the bottom rung.
Harmony glanced my way, but the look didn’t linger. It didn’t have to. I read her uncertainty, and I forced myself off the stage and into a seat to keep from rushing over to reassure her.
From the moment she opened her mouth, Harmony became Cosette. Every movement, every rise and fall of song and dialogue cut to the bone, the perfection so evident that all her classmates stood stunned as she belted out the final notes.
The theater held its breath. The whole world would bow at her feet. Broadway was only the beginning. She could go anywhere with a voice like that.
