Free The Tapestry in the Attic by Mary O'Donnell Page B

a professional atmosphere.”
    Peggy’s hand shot into the air, as if she were in a classroom.
    The professor smiled and said, “Yes, Mrs. Carson?”
    “My sister—Mitzy—is a hairdresser, and she’s really good. She’s great with makeup too.”
    “OK,” said the professor. “The theater has special requirements for hair and makeup—makeup in particular is very specialized. We’ll give her a chance; arrange for her to be at the theater on Monday at five o’clock, and I’ll interview her then.”
    Again, movement across the room caught Annie’s eye as Felix quickly punched the keys of his electronic device. Under Professor Howell’s direction and Felix’s organizational efforts, the behind-the-scenes team for King Lemuel’s Treasure was coming together. Then Annie swallowed hard. Glancing around the room, she realized all of the members of the Hook and Needle Club had been addressed but one. It was her turn next.

7
    “Do I have the pleasure of addressing Mrs. Dawson?” Professor Howell asked looking directly at Annie.
    Annie smiled and stood up. “Yes, Professor Howell. I’m Annie Dawson.”
    “Mrs. Brickson tells me you like to solve mysteries.”
    Annie didn’t quite know what to say about that. That’s the last thing she would have expected Stella to tell a stranger about her. She replied slowly, “Well, it has happened on occasion that I’ve stumbled across certain things that have raised some questions or problems, and those have needed to be solved or resolved. I really don’t go out of my way to look for mysteries, if that’s what you want to call them. I do seem to have an ability to notice little details that others sometimes overlook, and that often turns out to be the key to finding answers.”
    “It’s an interesting talent to have both a knack for paying attention to details that might not seem important to other people, and to be able to put them together to come to a conclusion that satisfactorily answers, as you say, questions or problems,” said the professor. “The reason I ask about this is that the job of prompter, for which Mrs. Brickson has recommended you, isn’t as easy as it might sound. It’s not just a matter of reading along with the play as the actors say their lines and then producing the missing words when they stumble. The prompter keeps a keen eye on the action as it unfolds and is a good listener who has an unusual ability to keep pace with the flow of the play. That ‘flow’ is all-important. It keeps the audience engaged in the story, and if it is broken, the play suffers. An actor should not appear to be struggling to remember his or her lines in front of the audience. A good prompter delivers that cue or those words in an almost musical way, just the moment before the ‘beat’ of the ‘music’ moves on. If you succeed at this, as I hope you will, it will be by noticing the details, by knowing this play like it was your favorite song. I’ll expect you to attend every rehearsal, watching the actors practice their scenes again and again, and you will need to read the play many times. Do you think you can do that?”
    Annie said yes, but she felt a little overwhelmed. It sounded intense. In her mind, she asked herself again, What have I gotten myself into?
    Annie thought the meeting was ready to wind down, but the professor had more to tell them. “I’m going to give each of you a small packet of papers I want you to read and study.” That was Felix’s cue to reach into his box again and pull out a stack of papers. He passed them around the room as the professor continued to speak. “This is something that I give to all my beginning students, to help them acclimate themselves with the basics. In particular, I want you to learn the special terminology we in the theater use. You should understand terms like stage right, stage left, upstage, backstage, proscenium, grid, and so on. If I ask you to sit in the house, please do not go home—I’m simply