Chapter Two
“Well, here it is. Not much, but it suits my needs.” Elizabeth and Meghan were standing in the middle of the latter’s apartment. There was a large window on the left wall that overlooked Broadway and had a magnificent view of the Majestic theatre. Elizabeth was more than pleased with that. There was a medium-sized TV placed in front of a comfy couch, with a little kitchen tucked off to the side. There were two bedrooms, one in the front and one off in the back next to the bathroom.
“It’s wonderful!” Elizabeth exclaimed, running over to the window. Meghan smiled at the young actress’ exuberance.
“Why?” she asked curiously.
“That,” she said, pointing out at the street below. Meghan peered out the window.
“All I see is the…ohhh,” she said, beginning to understand. Elizabeth wore a look of what had to be pure ecstasy. “You’re a Phantom phan, aren’t you?” she asked knowingly. Elizabeth nodded enthusiastically.
“That’s what I want to do. It’s all right there…” She reached out her hand and put it against the glass, leaving a little handprint. “So near and yet so far…”
“Snap out of it,” Meghan said, laughing. “Hey, if you want to be there, how did you end up in Cats?” Elizabeth shrugged.
“One has to start out somewhere, I guess, and Cats is as good a place as any. Besides, it’s always been one of my favourite musicals.”
“Really?” Meghan replied thoughtfully. “Do you have a favourite character?” Elizabeth smiled dreamily.
“I have quite a few, in fact…but mostly Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer.”
“Ahh,” Meghan said with a smile, “so you’re after my part?” Liza’s eyes widened as she interpreted the joke the wrong way.
“No, not at all! It’s just-“
“Hey, don’t worry about it, I was just joking,” Meghan interrupted. “Maybe someday you’ll get to play her…after I’m gone, of course,” she added, winking. “Besides, if you get to be my understudy, I’ll get to introduce you to the rest of the cast, including my Mungojerrie.” There came another wink. “Maybe you’ll have your own Mungojerrie when your performance time comes.” Elizabeth sighed.
“Love is the last thing on my mind right now.” Meghan smiled. She was starting to think of the young actress as a younger sister, even though they were probably only a few years apart.
“Don’t worry, hon, it finds you.” Before Liza had time to even start to think about that prophetic statement, Meghan pushed her into her room. “Now get some rest. No doubt you have a big day ahead of you.”
“All right, now, will everyone form two lines, one of women and the other of men,” the director shouted. “Now, you’ve already chosen roles that you would like to understudy, and we’ve separated you into groups based on that; but that does not mean you are auditioning for that specific role. We will understudy you, if you are even selected, to whatever role we choose. Roles that are paired up together will be cast together. With that in mind, I will call out the names of the pairs.” He started reciting names from a short sheet of paper. Elizabeth waited for her name to be called. She was auditioning to be Rumpleteazer’s understudy, and was quite nervous. Meghan had told her not to be, as had Alex and Alex, but it wasn’t helping any. “Elizabeth Rogers,” the director called out. Liza’s heart skipped a beat, and she strode to the front. “And Michael Lentry.” A man with dark brown hair who had to be a good two, three inches taller than her walked up alongside her. The director continued saying names. Elizabeth turned to her new partner.
“Umm, hello,” she said with an uncertain smile.
“Hello,” he said. They stood there in silence for a minute, each to shy to say anything.
“My name’s Elizabeth Rogers,” she said, sticking her hand out and unexpectedly breaking the quiet. “Some of the other cast members call me Liza, though. I don’t know why,” she added, a grin breaking though. The man laughed.
“I’m Michael Lentry, and I’ll just call you Elizabeth. It’s a nice name.” Liza giggled.
“Thank you. Well, are you here for Mungojerrie?” she asked.
“Yep, and I suppose you’re here for Rumpleteazer?” Elizabeth grinned and nodded. “Well, shall we practice?”
“Do you know the song and moves?” Elizabeth asked before answering.
“Of course,” he replied with a lofty look. In reply, Elizabeth started dancing, and giggled. Michael caught on immediately and shushed her in true Mungojerrie fashion. They continued on, both having the time of their lives. The dance instructor came up to them.
“Very good,” she commented. “Might I make a recommendation…” She started giving them pointers on how to make this movement flow better, or to make that one work easier. Out of the other pairs she had seen so far, this one worked the best together. After she left, Liza looked at Michael.
“I think that was a good sign,” he said before she could open her mouth.
“That’s exactly what I was going to say,” she grumbled. Michael laughed and shushed her, and so they started over, paying extra attention to the parts the dance instructor had told them about. The director abruptly entered the room and moved towards them. “On stage,” he growled. Michael and Elizabeth looked at each other and shrugged. The director made his way into the next room over. “Another good sign?” Elizabeth wondered aloud.
“Definitely, let’s go,” Michael replied.
There were only two pairs in the room, made up of hopeful chorus cats and kittens alike. Once again, the director took center stage.
“Congratulations. You are the final four. Two of you will be selected to understudy Mungo and Rumple. All of you know the dance. What is going to happen is that I am going to assign you a number, either one or two. When your number is called, your pair will perform. Understood?” Back came a chorus of ‘yes’s. “Well then, let’s just go down the line. One, and two,” he said, pointing at Michael and Elizabeth, “Okay, Backstage, everyone!” The various pairs made their way offstage.
“I’m nervous,” Elizabeth admitted.
“Don’t worry, if we’ve gotten this far it means we’re good. If we go farther, it means we’re almost the best. All we have to do is start ‘doin’ a what comes natur’lly!’” Michael concluded with a grin. Elizabeth laughed.
“Pair Two, will you please make your way to the stage entrance,” bellowed the director from his seat in row 3 alongside the choreographer. Elizabeth gulped.
“’Doin’ a what comes natur’lly,’” she repeated quietly to herself; and on they went. They started off a little shakily in the beginning, but quickly flowed into the whole move and groove of the song. There was an undeniable chemistry between the two that made all the difference.
“Pair One!” the director yelled after Liza and Michael hit their pose at the end. They quickly hurried offstage as the other pair hurried on. The two pairs were both equally good at dancing and singing.
“You’ll be notified tomorrow along with the other understudy announcements,” the choreographer stated. “I suggest you get some rest. What the cast members have told you is true: you’ll need it.”
Chapter Three coming soon!
