Memoir

Back then, when I lived in Tashkent, I used to attend to this place where kids were taught to sing, dance, and act. It was a kids’ studio. It was located inside the Navoi Theater, which is the biggest theater in Tashkent . I’ve been attending to that theater since I was 8.   In the year of 2008, I was 12 years old, and I was a good singer, dancer, and actor already, and I was proud of it. June 1st, 2008 was the day of our premiere, the play of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs that was put together by our kids’ studio. I had a big part, so I’ve worked hard on the play. And that exact day, was the day for us to shine.

We spent the whole year putting the play together.   Five days a week I had to work at the theater. We practiced for three hours, from 3-6. On June 1st I knew that we were all ready. We worked through pain, sweats, and frustration to come to that day and have a great time. Everyone was at the theater two hours before the show was supposed to start, and so did I. I changed my clothes, and began stretching. I was ready to rehearse and so was everyone else. We ran through four scenes to make sure they were perfect.

When we were done rehearsing I looked at the clock. We had 15 minutes before the show! I got very nervous. I saw people running around trying to get things done as soon as possible. I saw my director, Mr. Tulkunov, trying to get everybody’s attention. When everyone calmed down he said: “Do not worry, everything will be okay. I will check on everyone, to make sure you are ready to go.” Mr. Tulkunov was an amazing person, actor, singer, and director. He was the one who put the whole show together. I saw him walk around the hallway and talk to kids to cheer them up. While he was talking to other kids I saw my best friend and my mom coming my way. Madina, my best friend, was very excited and so was I. Madina sat next to me while my mom was doing my make-up. My mom has always supported me in everything. She is an amazing woman that I love with...