Emma joined the Marin Dance Theater almost as soon as we moved to Marin this summer. Her first performance was a quick collection of pieces put together over the summer session. The winter performance was far different. It was a full-length, two hour long ballet called Sophie and the Enchanted Toy Shop featuring a full 150 dancers. Emma and the other girls practiced multiple times per week for hours on end, including back-to-back full dress rehearsals as the night grew closer.

Ooh, la, la! So posh! (That’s a fancy word for fancy.)

On dance day we went over early to drop Emma off and played around the Marin Civic Center for an hour or so as the sun set. I took a few especially cute photos of Cora and Henry playing together or mugging for the camera. Sometimes the kids are “on” and any picture I take looks great. From the moment they started posing I knew today was going to be such a day. The light helped, too. The right light can make anyone a brilliant photographer and the setting sun really helped me out.

As show time grew closer we settled down and headed in to the theater for a pre-performance tea. Marla made a pile o’ peppermint patties which were, of course, a big hit. Henry and Cora were game and tried tea biscuits and mint tea but really were just in it for the cookies and candy canes. The lights blinked to let us know the show was starting so we hustled off to the theater to take our seats and watch Emma, as a beautiful school girl, sachet and pliet her way onto the stage… (She looks a little different than she did in her first ballet performance, don’t you think?)