I am a ballerina (with crazy curls)

I think I've talked about Maya's love of dancing several times over the course of this blog. But I'd like to recount a little tale to you about last night's happenings. Maya often announces these days the words I am a ballerina! This is generally followed by a brilliant little twirl or pirouette, wild curls flying, with the panache that only a three year old can muster. After her disinterest in the Bollywood dance class, I've thought that for the time being, she is happier either dancing to her heart's content at home or going to watch others performing.

I read in the paper that a local cultural centre had an evening classical dance performance. Phoning up to check the directions from a friend, she said that children were not permitted in the auditorium, so Lily and Andy had to stay behind but I thought that Maya and I would give it a whirl anyway. We turned up and not only were there large, ominous signs on the door saying NO CHILDREN UNDER TEN ALLOWED but the man selling the tickets shook his head very firmly and said it was out of the question that Maya be permitted entrance to the show. Oh, pleeeease I begged. He shook his head once more and said that there was nothing he could do. I'd been preparing Maya the whole way there in the rickshaw about how wonderful it would be and felt pretty bad about it.

Maya got the wrong end of the stick and thought the problem was that there was only one ticket left so she said to the man Don't worry, we can share! Bless her. I sighed and explained to Maya that children under ten couldn't go in. But I'm a big girl! she protested. I thought I'd give it one more shot. Please, I begged the ticket seller. She loves dance so much. And she'll be very, very good and quiet. The man loooked at me, then he looked at Maya. And Maya shot him one of her best little oh, go on cheeky grins (much like the one in the picture above, which is why I've included it). At this stage, the man looked around him shiftily then said whispered conspiratorially, Ok, get in there quick! But sit at the back, and the second she makes a noise, out you come. We darted in before he could change his mind. And Maya did indeed love it. We only stayed for an hour of the two hour show. For forty five minutes of that she was transfixed by the stunning costumes and graceful movements of the dancers. In the final fifteen minutes she started getting tired and fidgety and I decided that enough was enough when she got folded up in her seat - you know those seats you get in cinemas that you have to push down - well, these ones were extra heavy, presumably because they never have little under-ten-year-old bottoms sitting on them, so I'd been holding it down for her but had got distracted by the performance and up she shot, legs now up by her ears. Maya found this hilarious but I didn't want to risk the wrath of the organisers or get the ticket-seller in trouble so we nipped out as quietly as we could.

So yes, a successful night out and now Maya has a few more moves in her dance repetoire.