Preshow A hush falls over the crowd as the spotlight swings around to find him He’s standing at the bottom of a ladder He breathes in and sets his foot on the first rung Ladies and gentlemen Children of all ages Feast your eyes upon our next act Step after step the ladder takes him higher and higher up into the tent until he can’t smell the popcorn anymore and the faces below turn into far off blurs Heeeeee’s fearless He stops for a moment and squints looking down at the sea of people below in spinning technicolor He 1
Eliza Martin keeps a steady rhythm One foot the next One foot the next He’s nothing like you’ve ever seen before The tent falls silent as he reaches the top He hears nothing but his own heartbeat Shakily he steps out onto the platform his knees quivering A murmur ripples through the crowd and camera lights flash like tiny explosions through the big top He moves slowly arms outstretched keeping himself balanced as he carefully steps up to the edge He looks down and sees it a tiny blue speck just under his toes the pool of water he’s about to dive into The crowd oohs and aahs Their laughter laughter swirls and he hears Grimaldi the Lion roar from his cage backstage He takes a deep breath The one He stops A memory hits him so hard that he doubles over with the heartache the pain in his chest The crowd gasps and somewhere a woman screams Quickly he lurches back upright The show must go on The only 2
Harvey and the Extraordinary For a second he stands still and shuts his eyes Willing the memories to leave The laughter the little hand in his Big green eyes and freckles He lifts his foot to step again but not without her Standing tall worlds above the crowd he thinks of the worn school picture And there she is His little girl A drumroll splits through the air THE EXTRAORDINARY He jumps 3
