The Crippled Ballerina

The stage went dark,
Hushed the crowd,
The pianist shone,
They heard his sound.

Nimble hands moved gracefully,
A trinkling stream of sound,
Spot light fixed on his demure back,
Shadows flickered around.

As they swayed to his charming trance,
A silhouette danced to his tune,
The light was poor, her face not seen,
Began 'The Ballet Under the Moon'.

Slow and steady movements first,
Gently picking up pace,
Weaving steps with his piano keys,
Oh! they longed to see her face.

On a darkened stage her motions bright,
Enthralled they spoke no sound,
The silent hall the piano filled,
And her poignant steps abound.

Who was she? They knew her not,
A shadow with no form,
An illusion? No! that cannot be!
A ghostly moonlit storm.

And then he reached the crescendo
With a faster high and a deeper low,
She spun, she ran, she split, she jumped!
She poured her soul into the show.

And at the precipitous height he suddenly stopped,
"Oh Ellen I can no more!"
The lights came on, they saw him stand,
But the ballerina did not come afore.

He bowed deep, with tearful eyes,
To his listeners choked and shocked below,
And when it passed they clapped aloud,
Standing they cried, "A splendid show!"

They bothered not much of logic and truth,
It was a great show that held them in a muse,
Drowning him down in showers of praise,
But they failed to spot the ruse.

For the figure which they saw before,
Was but a shadow of a doll!
There she sat with her doll and light,
She once could dance, but she had a fall.

Now in a chair she sits alone,
And makes the shadows dance,
And a shadow they were of her true self,
For she was the best once in all France.

But smiles she now sitting alone,
Happy and no regret bore,
For he still played a storm for her,
And her shadows enthralled them for sure.

She poured her soul into the strings,
As if she could carry on still,
Her fingers moved with his piano's sound,
And what a show! what a thrill!

He went to her and kissed her hand,
She could not dance, but he loved her much,
Her strength was greater than strongest Joe,
Her soul was strong, and he love it such.