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Ginger Rogers duet – dancing with him. She looked at him with eyes wide with surprise. ‘We are going to be dancing together?’ She could hardly believe it.
    ‘Yes, you are Ginger and I’m Fred.’
    ‘But they are gods of the dance!’ she exclaimed.
    Rob looked at her and laughed. ‘What’s the matter, Bonny? Don’t you think I’m up to it?’
    She was overcome with embarrassment. ‘Good heavens, no! I was thinking about my not being good enough.’
    ‘If I didn’t think you were, I wouldn’t even think about doing it. You’ll be fine, but we have a lot of work to do. I need you to come in an hour earlier than the others every morning, because we can’t let Mr Astaire down now, can we?’
    ‘Or Miss Rogers, although I have red hair, so I won’t look a bit like her.’
    ‘You’ll be wearing a blonde wig,’ he said, ‘and I’ll have to smooth my hair with Brylcreem, but it will be our feet that will be doing the talking, Bonny.’ He became animated as he told her about the number. ‘I’ll be wearing evening dress, as will the chorus, which will be backing us. You will have a long dress, and we all have to work with canes.’
    ‘That could be a bit tricky,’ Bonny remarked, trying to visualize it all.
    ‘Practice will make us perfect,’ he assured her.
    And practice indeed was what he demanded of them all.
     
    Bonny showed up early for her first rehearsal with Rob. She couldn’t help feeling nervous, as she was to dance with him. But he put her at her ease as he showed her the opening set of steps. He then told her to take a break as he showed her what the rest of the number would be like, telling her as he danced what she would be doing.
    She was mesmerized by his ability. And soon she was dancing with him, trying to master the use of the cane with some aplomb. But as Rob held her and led her into the steps, she felt as if she was flying and wondered when ever she had been happier.
    The girls in the chorus were put through their paces also, until they gasped for breath and a drink of water. But there was a great air of excitement as they all realized that this was going to be something special.
    Shirley and Bonny had a duet also. The scene was set in a toy shop and the girls, dressed as toy soldiers, came to life when the clock struck midnight. They worked well together and Rob was pleased with the result.
    ‘Excellent!’ he cried at the end of their final rehearsal. ‘You’ve both worked well, the audience will love it!’
    They sank to the floor, tired beyond measure.
    ‘Dress rehearsal is on Sunday morning!’
    There were several moans from the girls.
    ‘Sorry, but it will be in the morning so you’ll have the afternoon and evening to recuperate.’ His eyes twinkled. ‘Once you are in costume, you won’t mind quite so much, and as a treat, I’ll buy the coffee and add a few cakes in the break.’
    There were cheers all round. Rob had threatened them all about gaining weight and so cakes had been forbidden.
    As they strolled home after, Shirley said, ‘I’m really looking forward to next week. I have a feeling that it means something special to our lord and master, and I have to say, Bonny love, when you two dance together, it really is something else to watch.’
    ‘In what way?’
    ‘You two together have a great chemistry. It’s like watching a love affair in dance.’
    ‘Don’t be daft!’ Bonny protested, flushing as she chastised her friend. Secretly thinking that being in the arms of Rob Andrews was every young girl’s dream.

Five
    The dress rehearsal went well. The girls, once in costume, seemed more animated. There was a sense that this show was something special and the adrenalin was running high. Some of the dance numbers were a background for a singer, who featured songs made popular by Jessie Mathews and Gertrude Lawrence, taken from West End shows such as Anything Goes and Ever Green. Others were specialized dances for the chorus alone, but the Fred Astaire