12 Ch12-The Big Holiday Pageant

Chapter 12 The Big Holiday Pageant Finally the day of the big holiday pageant arrived. Everybody came to school in their costumes. Miss Holly wore a Santa suit. Me and Ryan and Michael wore black jackets and had our hair greased up so we looked like Elvis. It was cool. We peeked through the curtains from

backstage. The all-purpose room was packed with parents. A bunch of them were setting up video cameras to record the show. "Guess what?" Miss Holly said. "Dr. Carbles, the president of the Board of Education, is here! He's sitting in the front row! Let's put on a great show for him." The stage was decorated with big candy canes, snowmen, fake snow, and a

giant reindeer. It looked great. Miss Holly nodded to me and Ryan and Michael. We pulled a long rope to open the curtain. The show started out with one of the fifth-grade classes telling the story of Christmas. After that me and Michael and Ryan sang "Hound Dog." Everybody went crazy! After that one of the fourth- grade classes told the story of Kwanzaa. After that we sang "Winter Wonderland." After that one of the third-grade classes told the story of Hanukkah. After that Emily sang "The Dreidel Song." "Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel, I made it out of clay...." Me and Michael and Ryan were taking

turns working the spotlight, and it was my turn. I shone the light on Emily while she sang and spun around. "The light is too high, A.J.," Ryan said "You're shining it in her eyes." "I am not," I said. "Are too," he said. We went back and forth like that for a while, but we didn't get the chance to finish the argument, because the most amazing thing in the history of the world happened. While Emily was singing and spinning around, she must have slipped on some fake snow or something because she fell off the stage! You should have been

there! When Emily was falling, she tried to grab hold of the giant reindeer. But it wasn't nailed down or anything, and the two of them fell into the front row and landed on Dr. Carbles, the president of the Board of

Education! It was a real Kodak moment. People were screaming. Mrs. Cooney, the nurse, ran over to make sure Emily was okay. The reindeer's head fell off, and some of the kindergarten kids started crying. It was hilarious. And we got to see it live and in person. Miss Holly ran onto the stage and told the audience there would be a short intermission. Backstage, all the girls were upset. All the boys were laughing our heads off.