According to my dancer-daughter, some stages are “raked.” A raked stage is one that slopes upward from the footlights towards the back, so that all the performers are visible to the audience.

In the past, my daughter has danced on such a stage when the ballet company she was with at the time, toured smaller theatres in surrounding locales, in and out of state. As you can imagine, maintaining one’s balance while twirling around is a tricky feat. Until a dancer becomes accustomed to a raked stage, it can be a stressful experience.

My daughter is grateful not to have to add dancing on a raked stage to the list of nervous moments that already await her on opening night, and all the nights  thereafter. But if she were to come across another raked stage in her career, she’d do what all dancers do. She’d get on with the show!

I’ve no idea if these dancers who entertained on the Queen Mary II, performed on a raked stage. But if they did…

…i’d never have known…for they were excellent………hugmamma.