From Christa: Those of you who know me, as in beyond flat screen computer know me, clearly understand why my parents did not name me Grace. In retrospect, that should have been the motivation to enroll in, not avoid, ballet classes. So, when I had the opportunity to review Tour de Force, even someone with walking-into-walls tendencies like me, the opportunity is cause for a mental pirouette.
Michelle Lenger’s cover design is stunning in its understated gauziness. This is a novel I would’ve picked up in a bookstore even without knowing Elizabeth White was the author. In “A Note From the Author,” Elizabeth shares her motivation for writing the book: “…to explore the fact that Christian artists in any field–music, dance, literature, art–often face tough decisions about how and where art infuses Christian lifestyle.”
I admire a writer willing to ponder the perplexities, and Elizabeth doesn’t let her characters off easily. They struggle, like real people, with real problems, and real decisions. And they teach us that sometimes our comfort can come when we least expect it and from the least expected people. Gilly learns, as Elizabeth said, “…the source of all joy…is to pour oneself out at the feet of Jesus.”
Tour de Force:
“…a feat of great technical skill…”
“…an arresting, vital step…”
A Passion for Dance
Gilly Kincade is a rising star on the New York ballet scene. Dancing is her life’s passion, second only to her love for Jesus, and she believes her faith sets her apart––but hasn’t held her back. Chosen for a plum role in a new ba
llet choreographed for her, it seems the sky’s the limit. Then she meets Jacob Ferrar….
A Passion for God
Jacob Ferrar has left behind the glittering temptations of stardom in New York ballet. He has established a reputation as a brilliant, innovative artistic director of a regional dance company in Alabama, with a vision for choreography that glorifies God and encourages the audience. In fact, he’s certain nothing could make him go back….
Becomes Love’s Tour de Force
When Jacob offers Gilly the lead in his original Easter ballet, she begins to reevaluate what she’s willing to sacrifice for dance. And he sees exciting potential of shining light on the world’s dark stage. But their brilliant first performance is destroyed by a terrible accident, and Gilly and Jacob find themselves facing an uncertain future. Together, they dance the fine line between personal vision and God’s will, listening for the beat of the Father’s heart.
REVIEWS
“White takes readers behind the scenes into the competitive dance world. It’s refreshing that Gillian befriends and respects people living different lifestyles while still boldly living out her faith.” (4 Stars)–Chandra McNeil, RomanticTimesBOOKCLUB
“…the perfect blend of a dramatic plot, challenging spiritual journeys and a fascinating insight into the life of a ballet company and its dancers.”–Rel Mollet
TitleTrakk
Elizabeth White
Elizabeth White is the author of Controlling Interest, Off the Record, F
air Game, Fireworks, and the Texas Gatekeepers series for Steeple Hill’s Love Inspired Suspense line. She lives in Mobile, Alabama.
Learn more about Elizabeth at http://elizabethwhite.net.
EXCERPT: CHAPTER ONE
Gilly Kincade stood en pointe to see over the dancers hovering around Meredith Bernard, who was crumpled in a heap of white tulle in the backstage shadows. She got a glimpse of stage manager Paul Arther, kneeling with the principal dancer’s purpling ankle in his hands.
“Shut up, Meredith, you’re not going back on stage.” Paul looked over his shoulder and barked, “Gilly, change your costume. I’ll hold the curtain five minutes, but you’ve got to hurry.”
Meredith moaned. “No! My ankle’s fine. Look!” She struggled to her feet, whimpering as her left heel came in contact with the floor. Her narrow, strong-boned face was ashen, and she blinked away tears.
Gilly wanted to cry with her. To be forced off the stage in the middle of a ballet––and in Saratoga Springs….“Paul, are you sure?”
Paul’s eyes frosted. “If you don’t want the role, I’ll put Victoria in.”
“No, I––Of course I want it.” She’d understudied Odette’s variations and knew them cold. Please, God, help me not to faint.
“Good.” Paul slid a finger under the satin ribbons wrapped around Meredith’s ankle and snipped through them, grounding the swan maiden for the foreseeable future. “You’ll need to put ice on that ankle, Mer. We’ll get it X-rayed as soon as the performance is over.”
Meredith began to sob that it was Dmitri’s fault that she came down wrong, and he should be fired. Or shot.
Gilly couldn’t look at her, didn’t have time anyway. Somebody would have to take her place in the corps de ballet, probably an apprentice waiting in the wings. But that wasn’t her problem. She tore into the dressing room. “Frankie! I need the other Odette costume!”
Frankie Silverman looked up from tacking Jarrica Black’s leotard onto her tights. “Now?”
“Yes! Curtain goes up in five minutes!”
“Gadzooks!” The costume manager leapt to her feet, leaving needle and thread dangling against the back of Jarrica’s thigh. “Stay put,” she ordered the young corps dancer.
Jarrica put her hands on her hips but obeyed.
Gilly stripped off her corps costume and let Frankie help her with the Odette tutu and headpiece, then charged out of the dressing room to stumble through dark, unfamiliar backstage territory. With fifteen seconds to spare she made it to her mark. The curtain opened.
She became Odette, transformed by the evil von Rothbart into a swan, doomed to eternally float on Swan Lake. She lost herself in the movement, the longing for humanity, the longing for her prince’s love––all dance was either elation or longing, rarely anything in between. There must be some spiritual implication, but for now she was simply a storyteller. Beautiful that she and Tchaikovsky, long dead, could communicate the love story of a doomed princess. She danced Act Two in a blur, high on the pure adrenaline of the spotlight. Beyond it breathed the audience, a black wall of energy. The corps surrounded her, white tutus forming beautiful lines of motion like lily pads floating on the lake of the stage.
Dmitri Lanskov danced toward her, smiling. “Up you go,” he murmured.
She leapt as Dmitri lifted her high, throwing both arms above her head, exploding with joy. He spun with her over his shoulder, carried her across the stage, carefully set her on her toes. She bourréed, floating away from Dmitri, drifted into a series of ecstatic arabesques, and bourréed toward him again. With her arm lightly curled around his head, they melted into a simple, elegant bow.
The audience came to its feet, roaring applause. Gilly could hardly breathe. She felt God’s smile.
***
Jacob Ferrar rose with the audience under the soaring canopy of the Saratoga Performing Arts Center amphitheater, smashing his hands together until they hurt. He had just been privileged to watch a star burst into place. If he’d had a flower he would have thrown it onto the stage, but who expected to be confronted with genius in a substitute corps dancer? It was like finding an orchid in a field of clover.
Suddenly he was glad he’d made the long, frustrating trip to attend Ballet New York’s final performance in their summer home. He almost forgot to worry about Graham, left with his indulgent grandparents. He almost forgot the effects of insomnia that had dogged him for the last two months. He almost forgot the last time he’d danced on this blazing stage.
After all, Saratoga Springs on a mild summer night was a magical place, even from the audience. Above the canopy of the stage the open sky shimmered with moonlight and far-flung stars, and from his orchestra level seat he was close enough to see the red-haired dancer’s kittenish face flushed with triumph, the thick false lashes and heavy make-up turning her into a porcelain doll. He could almost feel the throb of her pulse with the deep rise and fall of her childish bosom. He could see rivulets of sweat dripping off her dainty, pointed chin.
That made him smile. He glanced at Wendy Kersey, his company’s ballet mistress who had traveled with him from Birmingham to choose guest dancers for their Nutcracker. Even as she enthusiastically applauded, Wendy was watching Jacob, rather than the pair onstage folded into a graceful double bow.
“What?” He returned his attention to the dancers.
“You’ve changed your mind, haven’t you?” There was a smile in Wendy’s voice.
He didn’t answer for a moment, continued to applaud and cheer until the curtain closed for a final time. Finally he looked at Wendy. “Maybe. What do you think?”
“I think this is your company and you should do what you want.”
Jacob laughed. “You’ve been ballet mistress for three years and never held back your opinion. Why start now?”
Wendy gathered her black lace shawl around her bony shoulders and edged into the aisle. “Because you came here intending to offer a contract to Meredith Bernard, and now you’re considering this ingénue who hasn’t even made soloist yet.”
Jacob picked up his program and followed Wendy toward the theater exit. She was perhaps fifteen years his senior––though her age was a closely-guarded state secret, and no one knew that for sure––but she liked to play a game of deferring to him.
Amused, he caught up to her. “Clearly you don’t think that’s a good idea.”
Wendy stopped in the grassy park outside the covered seating. Subdued laughter and conversation floated around them as the departing audience eddied past. She sighed. “Jacob, your instincts are as good as any director I’ve worked with to date. Perhaps better. If you think this girl is ready to handle the Sugar Plum role, then by all means bring her down. But do take note that she has yet to dance it in New York.”
“That’s true.” Jacob shrugged. “Which I don’t understand. Poiroux is generally quick to move young dancers into responsible roles almost before they’re ready.” He shook his head. “But you saw her. Thirty-two fouettés perfectly nailed! I couldn’t take my eyes off––And she’s from Alabama. If we play that up she’ll be a real draw.”
“It would be a gamble.” Wendy made a wry face. “But at least she’ll cost less than the Bernard girl.” She lifted her shoulders. “Go for it, then.”
“There are reviewers here. The dance bloggers will be talking about her tomorrow.”
“Yes, which will drive up the price. Do you have a favor you could call in?”
“Not exactly. But I do know Maurice Poiroux.” He could swallow his pride for this. He folded his arms. “I’ll talk to him at the cast party tonight.”
Wendy studied him. “It’s been five years, Jacob.”
“But he won’t have forgotten.” He looked away. “I wouldn’t have forgotten.”
Her propriety was such that she rarely touched him unless they were demonstrating a dance, but she gently laid her fingers on his wrist. “It’s time to forgive yourself, my friend.”
“I know. Yes, I know.” He smiled, though some of the joy had gone out of the evening, and pulled her hand through the crook of his elbow. They began to thread their way through the crowd. “Let’s see if we can find the car in this madhouse. What do you think about Lanskov as her partner?”
***
Gilly dropped her dance bag on the floor inside the bedroom she had called home for the last three weeks and walked over to the antique dresser. For forty-two weeks out of the year, it and all the rest of the furnishings in this Victorian behemoth belonged to some rich upstate New Yorker involved with the horseracing industry, but she and four other dancers had been renting it during the month of July for the ballet season.
She flattened her hands on top of the white crocheted runner and leaned in to stare at her face in the mirror. Before leaving the theater she’d removed the mask of heavy makeup. Now, clearly visible, was the sprinkle of freckles she’d covered up since she was twelve years old, the tiny diamond stud in her nose that nobody could talk her out of, the quirky red eyebrows bent slightly upward at the tips.
But she was different now.
“Soloist,” she whispered. “You. Gillian Frances Kincade. Soloist for Ballet New York.”
She grinned and ran to grab her phone. Flinging herself backward on the bed she pressed the first speed dial number. It was hard to choose which of her sisters to call first, but Laurel was eldest and the more forceful of the two personalities. It was midnight here, but only eleven o’clock in Montgomery, Alabama. The McGaughans were night owls. They’d have put the girls to bed and stayed up to watch a late-night talk show or a movie.
Laurel answered on the first ring, her drawl distinct and sleepy. “Gilly! Honey, are you alright?”
Gilly laughed. “I’m very all right.”
“Oh, good.” There was a relieved sigh. “So how did the ballet go tonight? It was the last one, right?”
“Yes.” Gilly paused. “Laurel, are you sitting down?”
“I’m…well, Cole and I were––”
Gilly laughed. “No details, please. I just had to tell you––drum roll––” She took a giddy breath. “Maurice moved me up to soloist tonight. He announced it during the cast party.”
Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Laurel McGaughan actually squealed. “Oh, Gilly, that’s wonderful! Cole––Gilly made soloist.”
Gilly could hear her brother-in-law lean in to share the phone. “Congratulations, squirt. You deserve it.”
“Thanks.” She could feel her smile taking over her face again. “This is almost as cool as the day they invited me to join the company.”
“I can imagine.” Laurel had the phone back. “So give me the details. How did it happen? What did everybody say?”
“Um, well, everybody was excited for me except Meredith Bernard. She’s kind of in the hospital with her ankle in traction––which is why I got a shot at Odette tonight.”
“Wow. Poor girl.” Laurel understood the critical nature of a dancer’s body. She’d seen Gilly alternately pamper, discipline, and abuse hers for the last sixteen years. “But good for you. You must’ve brought down the house.”
“It was––oh, Laurel, I’ve always wanted to dance Odette in Swan Lake. Almost as much as Sugar Plum Fairy in Nutcracker.”
“Well, maybe that’ll be next.”
“Maybe. Maurice is kind of…unpredictable about casting.”
“That’s what I hear. Now that you’re a soloist, will he have any objection to you dancing in our arts festival in September? The entertainment committee is so excited about you coming.”
“No, there won’t be a problem. We did a formal contract after all. I talked to Tucker and he’s all set to do the music. I got my plane ticket rerouted yesterday. The rest of the company will leave Athens and go straight back to New York. I’m flying into Birmingham instead of Montgomery, though. Can you or Cole come pick me up?”
“Of course.” Laurel laughed softly. “Mom’s a little miffed that you’re planning to stay here during your break and not go on to Mobile, but she’ll get over it. She and Daddy and Mary Layne’s bunch are all coming up for the festival.”
“Yay! My whole million-member family all in one place! I can’t wait.” Gilly stood up to unzip the dress she’d worn to the cast party and shrugged it off. It fell to the floor, and she kicked it aside. “Well, I need a shower before I hit the sack. Don’t tell Mary Layne until I can call her tomorrow, okay?”
“Alright, baby, have a good rest. I bet you’re worn out.”
“Pretty much.” Gilly padded barefoot to the tiny bathroom off the bedroom. Her energy, fueled by adrenaline, seemed to seep away with each step. “Tell Cole good night for me.”
“Okay. Good night, little sister. I’m proud of you.”
“’Night, Lolly.” Gilly laid the phone on the counter and rooted in the cabinet for toothbrush and toothpaste, moisturizer and skin conditioner. Tomorrow she’d have to pack it all up and take the train back to the City with the rest of the company. Her little Tribeca apartment had stood empty for three weeks, and it would take a bit of effort to put her things back in order.
By the time she got that done, it would be time to pack again for the company’s Mediterranean tour. Maybe she should make a list before she went to bed.
As she squirted Ultra-Brite on her purple Elmo toothbrush, she caught a glimpse of her feet. Several blisters had popped and looked kind of red and weepy. She grimaced. Feet took precedence over lists, and she wasn’t going to be awake much longer.
Being the baby of the family, she wasn’t a natural organizer, but she’d had to learn to do more for herself since her mother moved back to Mobile about a year ago and left her on her own. Amazing the sacrifices her parents had made to give her this chance at chasing a dream.
And now, finally, it was paying off. Soloist. Soloist. Scrubbing her back teeth, mouth full of foam, she yawned. She spit and laughed at herself in the mirror. Even swan princesses had to sleep sometime.
Here are the blogs featuring Tour de Force during the JUNE 15-19 Tour.
4BoyBarbarians4Us
A Novel Menagerie
A Peek at My Bookshelf
Blog Tour Spot
Book Junkie Confessions
Books, Movies and Chinese Food
Cindy’s Stamping and Reviews
Drive Home Productions
Fictionary
Fresh Brewed Writer
Gatorskunz and Mudcats
Giving Up on Perfect
J’s Spot
Life is one daily adventure
Lighthouse Academy
Net’s Book Notes
Quiverfullfamily.com
Real Women Scrap
Refresh My Soul
Scraps and Snippets
Springs Writers
Steeler Girl’s Blog
Sueth sayings
The Law, Books and Life
The Sarah Jane Diaries
The Sassy Pear
The Writing Road
Wild Words . . . Photos and Fine Art
After earning a BA from Furman University, Mindy worked as a newspaper reporter
Arts Commission. She is a two-time winner of the South Carolina Fiction Prize and the Piccolo Spoleto Fiction Open. As a Walter E. Dakin Fellow in Fiction at the 2005 Sewanee Writers’ Conference in Sewanee, Tennessee, she worked with Alice McDermott and Mark Winegardner. She was awarded a residency at Ragdale in 2003 and attended Bread Loaf in 2000.Her book reviews have appeared in the Charlotte Observer and her column, “Author to Author,” featuring interviews with authors, have been published in the Greenville Journal. A Master Gardener
on, James. Like many stories, hers unexpectedly took a turn for the worst.
eek isn’t very productive unless I include some time with kids.”
global community who attend online. Under Jud’s leadership, Central is dedicated to helping people find their way to God. He is known for his conversational approach to teaching the Bible and his passion to help others know God and love him more. As Senior Pastor, Jud’s role is to be the spiritual leader of the Central family, the primary Bible teacher, and the communicator of Central’s mission, vision, and values.
rd-winning film stars James Garner, Brian Dennehy, and Abigail Breslin and was released in theaters by Fox in 2007. The Ultimate Gift won a Crystal Heart Award at the Heartland Film Festival, received three Movieguide Nominations, winning one of the Ten Best Family Films of 2007, and won a CAMIE Award, for one of the Top Ten Films of the year. Cheryl also wrote the DVD for Gigi: God’s Little Princess, another book adaptation based on the book by Sheila Walsh, as well as the Wild and Wacky, Totally True Bible Stories audio series and books with Frank Peretti. She wrote a half-hour drama for teenagers about high school violence, called Taylor’s Wall. It was produced in Los Angeles by Family Theater Productions. She wrote a script called Killing Hope, commissioned by Art Within, after winning a year-long fellowship. Her screenplay, Never the Bride, is being adapted into a novel for Random House Publishers and will be released in June 2009.
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d commentator, Dr. Mohler has been quoted in the nation’s leading newspapers, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The Washington Post, The Atlanta Journal/Constitution and The Dallas Morning News. He has also appeared on such national news programs as CNN’s “Larry King Live,” NBC’s “Today Show” and “Dateline NBC,” ABC’s “Good Morning America,” “The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer” on PBS, MSNBC’s “Scarborough Country” and Fox’s “The O’Reilly Factor.”
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nd dreams, and destroy their lives. In her personable and enthusiastic style, Wells helps readers understand:
live with her great-grandparents, who called her Thelma Louise Smith and loved her dearly. They took little Thelma to church, where she learned to love the hymns and praise songs.
