Growing the business was going to be an uphill battle, without that title. A title would bring serious competition students, coaching business, more performances. Without it, most of Dmitri’s private students came out of his group classes. Social dance was having a resurgence, thanks to ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ Entire wedding parties came in sometimes, and wedding couples wanted memorable first dances. When the cash flow finally permitted hiring a second full-time instructor, some of the pressure eased. Dmitri’s longtime student Julia Hart made the transition to teacher. She was fit, attractive, intelligent, and warm: ideal for casual students and for the men who wanted a pro-am competition partner. Dmitri still wasn’t actively looking for a new partner himself, but Patrick knew the day was coming.
When it did, late in 2011, the best thing about it was the light in Dmitri’s eyes. The near-certainty, even though the woman he wanted to work with wasn’t a ballroom professional. Had, in fact, hardly any ballroom experience. Michelle Walker was in her thirties, beautiful, blonde, a well-trained theatrical dancer. The perfect height for Dmitri, and a hard worker.
Michelle was a friend of Dana and Rory. The three of them all worked with the Underground Cabaret, another source of students for Shall We Dance. Dmitri would never have considered working with Michelle if he hadn’t seen her do a partner routine – incorporating jazz, foxtrot, West Coast swing, and pole dance – with the Cabaret. And he wouldn’t have seen that routine if Vince Connor, her partner for it, hadn’t brought his girlfriend Kelli Lopez to Shall We Dance for lessons.
Michelle asked Dmitri if he would be open to doing a routine with her for the Cabaret. His habitual control might have been his saving grace. For some reason the thought had never occurred to him. When he spoke to Patrick later that day, he said, “I have an astonishment.”
“Why, what happened?” Patrick was already smiling, because anything that astonished Dmitri was probably going to be entertaining.
“Dana and Rory’s friend, Michelle. She comes to me and says, I wanted to try a partner routine for December show, but Vince is busy with Kelli. They say I should ask you.”
“What did you say?” Patrick was fascinated now. The last time Dmitri had been approached that way it was by someone looking to do a routine for a Pride event. The result produced one of the few stories that could reliably make Dmitri laugh out loud.
“I said I would speak with Vince.”
Patrick waited for the rest of the story. It didn’t come fast enough to suit him. “Sweetheart. The rest of the story.”
“Vince says, did you see this. He shows me video.”
“And that was astonishing?” Dmitri had the link. He pulled it up and played the video for Patrick without comment. It was sexy, inventive, funny, thoroughly rehearsed and notably well-performed. “Okay, yes.” The faintest snort of amusement. “So what did you tell her?”
“I said yes. We do tango, theater arts. We dance to ‘Tanguera.’ Is good.”
“What the hell is theater arts?”
Dmitri smiled. “You will see.”
Chapter 5
December 2011
Patrick knew something was up when Dmitri got home from rehearsal. It wasn’t a ballroom thing, but he had that all-too-familiar vibe. “You look like you’ve got something on your mind, sweetheart. Weren’t you working with Michelle today, on that tango?”
“Yes. Mon amour, I think she is the one.”
Patrick had looked up her past work on YouTube once she crossed his radar. The clips on Michelle’s channel ranged from ballet en pointe to aerial pole dancing. No partner dancing except the thing with Vince. “Your next partner? Has she ever even done ballroom before?” Dmitri shook his head. “Have you asked her yet?”
“After the performance. She is new to tango, she is nervous. She has no idea what she is capable of.” Argentine tango had been in Dmitri’s teaching repertoire ever since he saw ‘Forever Tango.’
“From what I’ve seen, she’s capable of just about anything.” They looked at each other. Patrick had a sinking feeling along with a wanting-to-laugh feeling. For the past three years, Dmitri hadn’t even mentioned trying to find another partner for professional competition. Patrick had almost hoped he wouldn’t want to try again, at going-on-fifty-two. But the look in his eyes was the same fierce determination Patrick had seen with every new attempt. And this time, there was something close to certainty. “Is possible?”
Dmitri half-laughed at Patrick’s appropriation of his own speech pattern. From some people, it would have been offensive. From Patrick, it had never been. “Is possible. If I can convince her.”
Patrick didn’t have much doubt about that. Dmitri could be very persuasive when he wanted something. He had a way of presenting a suggestion that made a person think it was their idea all along. “When would you want to start?”
“California Open, in February.”
“Jesus, honey, that’s not much time.”
Dmitri didn’t shrug, exactly, but his physical gesture conveyed ‘it is enough.’ “You will come to performance?”
“Of course. I’ll come to both of them. When are you going to ask her, right after? When she’s all hyped up on adrenaline?”
“Yes.” Now Patrick did laugh. It hardly seemed fair. He might not be a dancer himself, but he knew how suggestible they could be after a successful performance. And based on the rehearsals he’d seen, this one was going to bring down the house. Dmitri touched him then, placing a hand on his shoulder. Patrick met his gaze. “My dear love, I know this will be hard. It will be the last time.”
Patrick’s heart lurched. He knew Dmitri didn’t want to give up on the dream of becoming the World Professional Smooth champion, the dream that had kept him going for twenty-plus years of endless, painful work. “Anything you need,” he said, intense and sincere. “Whatever you need to do this, I will make sure you get it. I love you.” Dmitri pulled him in for a kiss, holding him tight, murmuring that soft Ukrainian phrase that Patrick knew meant ‘I love you.’ They were still locked in each other’s arms when the oven beeped to remind them dinner was waiting.
Patrick made a point of finding out when Dmitri and Michelle would be rehearsing, and of getting to the studio to see them. He didn’t think he was equipped to judge the quality of the dancing (though he knew a hell of a lot more about it now than he had eight years ago). He mostly wanted to see how Michelle was with Dmitri. Was she tough enough, and was she a team player. A ballroom partnership was a unique animal. Not unlike a marriage, in fact. The level of intimacy was profound, and the level of communication had to be near-telepathic.
By dress rehearsal, he knew something extraordinary was happening. He kept his mouth shut, because it was clear Dmitri already knew. And if Michelle didn’t also know, he would be astonished. ‘Theater arts’ was one of those cryptic phrases that meant nothing to Patrick pre-Dmitri. Right up to this minute, in fact, because Dmitri hadn’t done theater arts with any of his professional partners. The lifts were mind-blowing. After seeing them rehearse, he asked Dmitri how much extra time he was putting in at the gym. They went together fairly often, but this was beyond. Dmitri said, “Too much.” Patrick booked him a massage.
Both performances were show-stoppingly good. It was just as well Dmitri and Michelle were dancing last on the program, because nobody should have had to follow that. If Patrick hadn’t seen the number in rehearsal he would have hardly believed that was his very own longtime love on stage. Not only was the choreography sharp, the style exact, and the aerial work amazingly strong, it was sexy. Just as Michelle’s number with Vince had been. There was nothing overtly seductive in the way she related to Dmitri. It was some combination of focus, commitment, and trust. The way she moved said ‘do anything with me,’ and it really seemed Dmitri could.
The Act 2 performers all took a curtain call together, as usual. Then the others stepped back from Dmitri and Michelle, giving them another bow. So different from a competition floor. He escorted her back
to the green room to change, saying only that he hoped she could have a drink with him and Patrick. When they sat down to talk, the mood in the nightclub was elevated, the music was loud, and Michelle was astonished. “Ballroom? Me?”
“I know you can,” said Dmitri. “If you train with me. Will you try?”
Michelle studied him for a minute. At going-on-thirty-five, she’d thought her chances for a dance career were over. Her work with the Underground Cabaret was satisfying, but each performance was a gift to herself; there was no money in it. She didn’t know anything about ballroom dancing as a profession. She didn’t know if competitors made any money. On the other hand, she’d loved working with Dmitri on this tango routine. He knew everything there was to know about ballroom dancing. If he wanted her to try, maybe she should.
She looked over at Patrick, sitting quietly beside Dmitri at the bar. She’d only met him twice, when he dropped in to Dmitri’s studio while they were rehearsing. Such a sweet face, she thought. Dmitri had kind eyes too, but his expression was habitually austere. Patrick always looked ready to laugh. “Should I?” she said, directing the question to him.
“You’ll have the time of your life,” he said. “I saw you up there. Wasn’t that the kind of dancing you’ve always wanted to do?”
Shit, how did he know? She sighed. “I think that’s the kind of dancing everyone wants to do. Okay. A tryout,” she emphasized. “Give me a tryout. Let’s see how fast I can pick it up. Because I can’t ditch the day job.”
“Understood,” Dmitri said.
Michelle was in a state of confusion the next day. This was too exciting a possibility to blow off but it was also, frankly, terrifying. On the one hand there was the just-complete tango, which really had been everything she’d always wanted to do as a dancer. On the other hand, she’d had a few minutes to Google ‘competitive ballroom dancing.’ Depending on the style Dmitri wanted to do, she would have to learn either four or five dances. On the other other hand, while she didn’t want to give up the Cabaret, aside from the tango with Dmitri her most-favorite performance had been with someone who probably wasn’t going to be available going forward. She didn’t even feel like she could call and ask him, because she knew he was preparing a performance for a big year-end event, with another partner. I’m on my own here, she thought, and ugh.
But then she met up with Dmitri for the tryout, and he didn’t treat her as a remedial student. He clearly respected her background, and was just as clearly confident that she could accomplish what he wanted. It had been a very long time since Michelle worked with a partner who had such a clear vision, and all the tools to execute it. The whole thing was exhausting, overwhelming, exhilarating, and irresistible.
At the same time Dmitri was seducing Michelle, he was helping his students Vince and Kelli prepare for a major performance of their own. They’d been invited to dance at a New Year’s Eve event, using the routine they created (with Dmitri’s help) for the Underground Cabaret’s Halloween show. It was another new thing for Dmitri: a dance with a narrative, like ‘Calling All Angels’ back in 2007, but using a very different vocabulary. And, notably, based on his students’ own conception of the dance. He had never collaborated with students in quite this way before.
They came in for private lessons three times a week all through December, polishing the number to the highest possible standard in the time available. The day after Christmas, they arrived to find Dmitri working alone, with concentration, in the middle of the floor. He’d lost track of time, but he didn’t stop when the door opened. He wanted to finish the phrase that he’d imagined. The music was an edit of Pink Martini’s ‘Bolero.’ They hung back and watched until he stopped dancing. Kelli applauded. “Wow, Dmitri, what was that for?”
He was a little out of breath. “Something I show to Michelle one day.”
“That would never fit on the stage at Level,” Vince observed, referring to the club that hosted the Underground Cabaret.
“No, is for the ballroom. But now! Time for you. I return.” He went into the studio’s bathroom, returning quickly with wet hair and in a fresh shirt.
Vince had cued the track for their rehearsal. “What should we work on tonight? We’re warmed up and ready to go.”
“Just dance, as if you are on stage. Places, please.” They had changed one of the lifts, and after the first run-through Dmitri worked with them on it. Then he set up the video camera, and they did the routine again at full power. “Is good.”
“Let’s see.” Vince and Kelli came up to the camera.
“You take it home with you. I give you nothing more now.”
Kelli said, “What? We can’t have nothing.”
“Okay, one thing. Show me your bow.” He turned on the camera again. They took their ending positions. Kelli pulled Vince to his feet and they did a simple bow before walking ‘off’ together. Then they turned to face Dmitri. “Okay. How are you feeling when you take the bow?”
“Glad it’s over,” said Vince, and Kelli laughed.
“Yes, but.” Dmitri didn’t quite smile – he rarely did – but he was pleased. He let it show. “You know, there is much acting. Especially a performance of this nature. Do not stop acting when it is over. Not until you are offstage.”
Kelli looked blank. “What do you mean, exactly?”
“Your exit is part of performance. You see? You must acknowledge the applause. There will be much applause.” He made eye contact with each of them, to make sure they understood. “Acknowledge it, return it to them. You are pleased to have performed for them, you deserve the applause, and you thank them. Communicate all this.”
They looked at each other doubtfully. Dmitri took Kelli’s hand and, leading her to the middle of the floor, demonstrated. Vince got it. “Oh!”
“You see? No apology, no little nod of the head. Big!” Dmitri returned Kelli to Vince’s side. “My first teacher in the United States, he tells me most important thing. ‘Attitude is Altitude.’ Here I am, scrawny teenager with three words of English. He said, ‘own the floor.’ How tall am I?”
Vince blinked. “Six feet?”
“No. I am same height as you. You see?” He gestured to the mirror.
Vince looked at their reflection. “What the fuck?”
“Five feet ten inches. It is attitude that makes me look big. The physical attitude, yes? Show me your bow again.”
His students went back out and Dmitri started the camera. They repeated the finishing pose, then Kelli pulled Vince to his feet. Copying what Dmitri had done, he presented her. They both extended their outside arms, palms up, and bowed. Vince gave her a turn to his other side and they both took an even deeper bow. Then, unhurried, they went ‘off.’
Dmitri looked satisfied. “Good. Now you own the floor. Practice.”
“And that’s all for tonight?”
“What you have achieved is remarkable. I see you back here in two days but only to practice, yes? You have created beauty and I add nothing more. You are a credit to me and to the studio, but most importantly to yourselves.”
“Oh, say that again,” Kelli begged. “With more Ukrainian.”
“You are a crrrrrrrredit to me,” said Dmitri, awarding that rare smile. This time, before they left, there was a group hug.
Patrick detected something different in his beloved that night. “Did you work on something today? You have that Did Good thing going on.”
Dmitri laughed under his breath. “I worked on show dance. Is only a dream for now. Then Vince and Kelli.”
“Oh, ‘Blue Angel.’ Are they going to be ready?”
“They will be excellent.” He stretched luxuriously, feeling relaxed, well-fed, and somewhat amorous.
Patrick may have noticed. He dropped his robe on the floor and got into bed beside Dmitri. “He’s a lot like you.”
“Mmm.” It wasn’t only the height. Vince had superb musicality and natural athleticism. His dance training up to now had been spotty, but Dmitri thought he had real pot
ential if he decided to stay with it. “He will continue to improve as long as Kelli wishes to dance.”
“His perfect partner?” Patrick said that with his mouth on Dmitri’s chest, so it was slightly muffled.
Dmitri shifted, pulling his lover up for a kiss. Like you, he thought.
On New Year’s Eve, they were in the audience at the House of Blues, waiting patiently through the other performances, mostly enjoying them. It was loud and crowded, not their usual scene, but it wasn’t every day that students had an opportunity like this. Dmitri knew it would mean a lot to Vince and Kelli for him to be there. Patrick, as always, would go almost anywhere for Dmitri. “Just like old times,” he said, close to his lover’s ear so he didn’t have to yell. “I remember when going to a club was the most fun thing ever.”
Dmitri bit back a laugh. He truly regretted that he hadn’t seen Patrick in those days. The few snapshots that had survived were now scanned into their digital archive, proof that Dance Sport wasn’t the only home of regrettable hair and clothing choices. Patrick’s hand was resting on the table next to his cocktail. Dmitri took that hand, lifted it to his lips, and kissed it. Patrick looked completely shocked, and also as if he might cry. Dmitri squeezed his hand, keeping hold of it as he let their arms straighten again.
Oh my God, Patrick was thinking, because he couldn’t seem to think anything else. It was the first time ever that Dmitri had done something that explicit in public. Maybe he could see that nobody there was paying the least bit of attention to them. Maybe he simply didn’t care anymore. Patrick wasn’t going to question it. He was finally ready for it too. When he wanted another sip of his cocktail, he used his other hand. They didn’t let go until the end of Vince and Kelli’s dance, when they stood up to applaud.
Change Partners (The L.A. Stories) Page 8
