Orca Limelights
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Stepping Out
by Laura Langston
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Laughter is fifteen-year-old Paige Larsson's currency in life. It takes the sting out of life's tough stuff. It eases the pain of nasty comments, agonizing moments in gym class, and awkward pauses at parties. She likes it, even more, when others laugh with her, so she's become a YouTube comedy vlogger.
Now Paige is about to step out of her comfort zone and compete-live and onstage-in the prestigious International Teens in Comedy festival. Winning will give her the opportunity to work with some of the biggest names in comedy. It'll also mean $10,000 for her school's performing arts department. But Paige has always used her humor to mask the pain of a disability, and in the world of stand-up comedy, that won't cut it anymore.
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Hot New Thing
by Laura Langston
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Lily is discovered by a big-name director when she's auditioning for a role in a toothpaste commercial. He wants her for his new movie, which is great except for the fact that it's shooting in Los Angeles and Lily lives in Vancouver. With the help of her Chinese grandmother, she convinces her parents to let her go to LA with her agent as a chaperone. But when she gets there, she finds out that if she wants to be more than the flavor of the week, she's going to have to pay a price that may be way too high.
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The Frail Days
by Gabrielle Prendergast
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Sixteen-year-old drummer Stella, guitarist Jacob and bassist Miles need a wild singer for their old-school rock band. When they discover nerdy Tamara Donnelly, who nails the national anthem at a baseball game, Stella is not convinced Tamara's sound is right for the band. Stella wants to turn Tamara into a rock goddess, but Tamara proves to be a confident performer who has her own ideas about music and what it means to be epic cool.
When their band, the Frail Days, starts to build a local following, Stella and Tamara clash over the direction the band should take, forcing them to consider what true musical collaboration means.
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Big Time
by Tom Ryan
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Gerri waits outside all night to audition for Big Time, her favorite TV singing competition. She believes she has a shot at success, but when she's insulted by one of the judges and kicked out of the competition, she thinks she'll probably never sing again. After a teacher at her school asks her to join a choral club, Gerri reluctantly gets involved. Even though she can't read music and she doesn't know the other kids, she finds herself enjoying the group and learning a lot about music. A cute guy she met at the Big Time auditions joins the group, and when they perform their unique mashups at an open-mic night, Gerri realizes there's more than one way to be a successful-and happy-singer!
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Upstaged
by Patricia McCowan
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Ellie is used to getting leading roles in her small-town school's musicals, but her place at center stage disappears when her dad becomes the host of a breakfast TV show and they have to move to the big city. When Ellie auditions for-and lands-a spot with the Youth Works Theater Company, she comes up against a tight-knit group of talented, experienced and competitive triple-threat performers. Not only does she not get a lead, but she has to share a role with Marissa, a company veteran who seems determined to do all she can to outshine Ellie. Out of her depth and far from all that she's known, Ellie wonders just what she has to do to stop feeling upstaged by everyone around her.
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Slip Jig Summer
by Elizabeth J. M. Walker
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Fifteen-year-old Natalie is obsessed with ballet and plans to spend the entire summer in dance class with her two best friends. But when her mom gets a job out of town, Natalie gets shipped off to stay with cousins she barely knows.
Natalie is thrilled when her cousins invite her to join them at the local dance studio. But it turns out it's not a ballet class; it's Irish dance. Skeptical at first, Natalie is surprised to learn she really enjoys the new dance style and agrees to take part in an upcoming competition. But this new passion could result in Natalie having to leave her ballet dreams behind.
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Cut the Lights
by Karen Krossing
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Briar has a vision for the one-act play she's been chosen to direct at her performing arts high school. She's going to create a masterpiece. If only everyone involved in the production shared her vision. Her leading lady is gifted but troubled, her leading man has a crush on the leading lady, her stage manager doesn't have a clue, and her best friend, who wrote the play, is worried that Briar's production is cursed. As Briar struggles to motivate her cast and crew, she learns some important truths about the fine art of directing-and about herself.
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Warm Up
by Sara Leach
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Jasmine used to love dance. Now she struggles to hold on to that love as her dance team trains for a big competition. Her teammates are bickering, and when their teacher suggests that Jasmine might not have what it takes to be on the team, Jasmine is ready to quit. At a particularly rough practice, she channels her anger into her moves, surprising everyone, including herself, with how well she dances. But the team is still falling apart, and it's up to Jasmine to figure out a way to get her teammates to work together and celebrate the joy of dance.
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Breaking Big
by Penny Draper
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Robin's got everything it takes to be a principal dancer: the body, the feet, the strength and the passion. But his devil-may-care attitude plays havoc with discipline at the Premier Dance School. One more prank may be one too many. That's why everyone is shocked when he's the only student dancer picked to understudy with the company, even though the choice makes sense-Robin is cast as Puck, the annoying trickster fairy in A Midsummer's Night Dream. Shock turns to horror when the principal dancer is injured and Robin has to perform instead. The other dancers don't think he can pull it off, and even Robin wonders if it's too much too soon.
Will his big break kill his career before it even starts?
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True Blue
by Sigmund Brouwer
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Elle is on the road as an opening act for Johnny James, the biggest star in country music. Touring is everything she's ever dreamed of, but it has unexpected downsides: crazy fans, jealous backup singers, weird rules on the tour bus. But when something goes terribly wrong during a performance, Elle struggles to figure out how she can make things right with her fans, her father, her record company and with her friend Webb.
True Blue continues the story that began in Billboard Express.
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Rock the Boat
by Sigmund Brouwer
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Webb believes that if you want to reach your dreams, you have to live life loud. Bring the roof down. Rock the boat. Make sure that when you look back, you have no regrets. But when a shady music producer steals one of Webb's songs, Webb finds out how hard it is for a kid on his own in Nashville to get justice. With the help of an unlikely ally, Webb discovers that he has what it takes to succeed: talent, determination and some good friends.
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Raw Talent
by Jocelyn Shipley
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Fourteen-year-old Paisley loves to sing. She dreams of being a pop star just like her idol, Denzi, who also grew up in the small town of Stonehill. The problem is, Paisley suffers from severe stage fright. She can only sing in private. When word gets out that a famous Stratford actor who has worked with Denzi is staying at a local B&B, Paisley decides it's time to face her fears. She convinces the actor to tutor her and signs up to sing in a high-profile fundraiser.
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Learning the Ropes
by Monique Polak
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Mandy dreams of a career in the circus, working as an aerialist who specializes in rope climbing. When she is accepted into the prestigious Montreal Circus College summer program, she feels that she is finally on her way to fulfilling her dreams. At circus camp she is befriended-and challenged-by young circus performers from around the world. Circus camp turns out to be a magical combination of work and play, but when a veteran aerialist is killed in a fall, Mandy must confront the reality of circus life.
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Offbeat
by Megan Clendenan
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Fourteen-year-old Rose is sure she's going to become a folk-music sensation, with her best friend, Shilo, at her side. But first she needs to convince her mom to keep paying for her expensive violin lessons. Her mom wants her to join the youth symphony and focus on classical music, in preparation for a music degree at university. When Rose enters a fiddle competition with a unique prize for the winner, she hopes to show her mom she can really can make it as a folk musician.
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Raising the Stakes
by Trudee Romanek
Part of the Orca Limelights series
It's the start of a new season for Harrington High's improv team-and Chloe is determined that this will be the year they make it all the way to the top. Her teammates (who also happen to be her closest friends) are a talented bunch, and she knows they can do it. They have to. Because getting to nationals is Chloe's best chance to prove-to her parents, to the improv scouts and, most of all, to herself-that she has what it takes to succeed. Chloe is doing everything she can to help her teammates perform better. So why are they all mad at her?
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At Ease
by Jeff Ross
Part of the Orca Limelights series
At fifteen, Will already knows he wants to spend his life playing classical violin. And when he is invited to take part in a summer program for young musicians, he realizes it is a chance to make his dream a reality. But years of playing only for Mr. Jorgensen, his elderly neighbor, and mentor, haven't prepared Will for what will happen when he steps onto the stage. He never expected the self-doubt that takes over his thoughts or the fear of failure that makes his hands shake and his heart race. What happens when the one thing you need to achieve your dreams is something you find utterly terrifying?
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Forcing the Ace
by Erin Thomas
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Alex wants to enter the Silver Stage magic competition, but he needs a sponsor. Jack, a veteran card wizard, is willing to take on the role, but only if Alex agrees to team up with Zoe, another young magician-and Alex's rival. Working with Jack and sharing the spotlight with Zoe, Alex comes to see that there are other ways to be a magician besides competing-and that magic is about entertaining people, not fooling them.
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Strings Attached
by Diane Dakers
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Brielle and Tawni have played cello side by side in orchestras since they were nine years old. Brielle has always played second chair to Tawni's first, and she's been happy with that arrangement.
When Tawni is injured, Brielle suddenly finds herself principal cellist. Not only does that mean she'll be thrust into the spotlight, but it also means she is now leader of the cello section. Brielle is terrified. Is she good enough? Will the other musicians accept her? What if she screws up?
Despite her fears, Brielle rises to the occasion. Her cello skills, and her leadership skills, improve as she grows into her new role. But just as Brielle is beginning to feel confident, Tawni returns. And she wants her job back. If Brielle steps down now, she'll lose her place in the spotlight. If she doesn't, her friendship could be in jeopardy.
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High Note
by Jeff Ross
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Hailey McEwan has many interests-soccer, field hockey, animation. She'd probably never have started singing if her best friend, Crissy, hadn't persuaded her to take singing lessons and join her choir. No one had any idea that Hailey would be such a natural, least of all Hailey herself. A shared love of music-from pop to opera-has been a big part of the girls' friendship, but when the two face off in a competition for a role in a production of The Marriage of Figaro, their closeness turns into a bitter rivalry. Hailey will have to make a tough decision. Is opera as important to her as it is to Crissy? And is landing a role worth losing her best friend?
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Show Mode
by Raquel Rivera
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Adina has always wanted to be a part of the annual fashion show at her school for the arts. Now that she's finally in the ninth grade, she and her friends can audition. She knows their act could be perfect. They've got great music, gorgeous costumes, and wicked dance moves. But Willow is being her usual flaky self, and Sandra's getting touchy. Maybe even a bit mean. Luckily, Seth remains steady and reliable. Their biggest competition is the annoyingly perfect Prima Donnas, who are doing everything they can to undermine Adina and her friends.
Adina is used to working hard at everything she does, including her violin, art, drama, and singing classes. But her friends are getting sick of her ordering them around. They just don't get what a huge deal this is. When one of the Prima Donnas gets injured during their audition, minutes after Sandra storms off in a huff, the two groups realize that in order to succeed, they may have to work together.
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Nova in New York
by Katherine Richards
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Seventeen-year-old Nova Abbott grew up dancing barefoot in the backyard with her aunt Ivy, whose dreams of becoming a professional ballerina were cut short by cystic fibrosis. Nova is invited to attend a prestigious ballet school's summer intensive program. She is a bit overwhelmed by New York City: the bustle of people, the talent of the other dancers, the demands of the instructors and being separated from her beloved aunt, whose health is deteriorating rapidly. With a coveted apprenticeship up for grabs, Nova isn't sure she'll make it in the big leagues, and now she's not even sure she wants to.
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POV
by Ted Staunton
Part of the Orca Limelights series
When first-year film student Spencer O'Toole is asked to make a music video for a band, he leaps at the chance. But Jerry, Spencer's dad, shows up, and somehow the band assumes he's in charge, despite the fact that he has zero background in film. And then there's Scratch, violent gang member turned sleazy music producer, who keeps making big promises but fails to deliver on a single one. Spencer has no idea how he's going to get this thing made. When the band invites him and his dad up to a cottage for the weekend, Spencer takes the opportunity to ditch Jerry. But one small fib snowballs into dozens of lies, and soon Spencer finds himself in way over his head.
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Honeycomb
by Patricia McCowan
Part of the Orca Limelights series
When Nat, her best friend Jess and singing-star wannabe Harper sing together, their harmonies bring down the house. For Nat, the experience sparks a driving new desire to perform. But when the girls form a trio and enter a contest for a chance to play at the Tall Grass Music Festival, Nat finds that harmony-musical and otherwise-is hard to maintain. Her bandmates almost never agree, her new boyfriend starts behaving more like a non-boyfriend, and the trio's famous-musician mentor doesn't even like the way Nat breathes. Every day, Nat's dream of performing at Tall Grass seems farther away, and she questions whether she has what it takes to get there.
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Shimmy
by Kari Jones
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Lila has always wanted a career in belly dance, so she is thrilled when she is invited to join Dana Sajala's competitive and prestigious studio. But dancing at the new studio isn't quite what she expected. Dana Sajala is a tough teacher, and Lila finds the constant criticism stressful. On top of that, Lila misses the dancers from her old troupe, and a rift is developing between her and her best friend, Angela, who is not altogether sympathetic to Lila's struggles. Lila has always loved belly dance-the the music, the costumes, the choreography-but when she realizes that none of it is as much fun as it used to be, she starts to question whether she has made the right choice.
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Attitude
by Robin Stevenson
Part of the Orca Limelights series
When Cassie comes to Vancouver from Australia for an intensive summer program at a prestigious ballet school, she finds it hard to fit in. A clique of girls who have been at the school a long time don't want the newcomers to get any attention. At first Cassie tries to go along to get along, but when she realizes that some of the visiting summer students are being bullied and threatened, and that she herself is being sabotaged, she finally speaks out-and finds out how far some girls will go to succeed.
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Off Pointe
by Leanne Lieberman
Part of the Orca Limelights series
When Meg's summer ballet program is canceled and her ballet teacher suggests she attend Camp Dance to learn new dance styles, Meg is devastated. Worse still, her teacher thinks she lacks stage presence and needs to connect more with her audience. At camp, Meg struggles to learn contemporary dance. A girl named Logan, who is jealous of Meg's ballet technique and her friendship with Nio, a cute contemporary dancer, makes Meg's life even more difficult. When Meg, Nio, and Logan have to work together to create a piece for the final show, arguments threaten to ruin their dance. Unless they are able to overcome their differences, Meg's time at Camp Dance will have been a disaster from start to finish.
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Billboard Express
by Sigmund Brouwer
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Elle has come to Nashville to become a star. She has what it takes, but her agent and all the label executives want to change everything about her-her hair, her body, her clothes and, most important, her music. So Elle becomes a blond, sings about cookin' for her man and wears tiny shorts and revealing tank tops. Then a chance meeting with an established female songwriter makes Elle realize that she's paying too high a price for success.
Billboard Express continues the story that began in Rock the Boat by Sigmund Brouwer.
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Getting the Brush Off
by Mere Joyce
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Two years ago, sixteen-year-old Sydney Hart was kicked out of the prestigious Burke Academy when her mother could no longer afford the tuition. She lost a promising future in the arts, as well as her best friend, who didn't want to be seen with an art-academy reject. But now, without Burke's rigid structure, Sydney has found her true passion in performance painting and is busking on Halifax's boardwalk to earn enough money to go to art camp. After the police shut her down, Sydney learns her old school is hosting a "brush-off" speed-painting contest with a cash prize. Entering would mean facing her painful past, not to mention her former friend, who's also competing.
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Pop Quiz
by Tom Ryan
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Fifteen-year-old Aiden is a minor cast member on a long-running high school "dramedy" with a low budget and a loyal following. Aiden and his friends are excited that they're being promoted to lead roles for the upcoming tenth season of Pop Quiz. But then they learn the show is being canceled. According to the producers, no one even watches TV anymore, with kids preferring the antics of YouTube stars. With the help of some former cast members and a group of hardcore fans, Aiden and his friends attempt to create a movie special to wrap up the storylines and give the series the send-off it deserves.
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Billboard Express
by Sigmund Brouwer
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Elle has come to Nashville to become a star. She has what it takes, but her agent and all the label executives want to change everything about her-her hair, her body, her clothes, and, most importantly, her music. So Elle becomes a blond, sings about cookin' for her man and wears tiny shorts and revealing tank tops. Then a chance meeting with an established female songwriter makes Elle realize that she's paying too high a price for success.
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Casting Lily
by Holly Bennett
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Fourteen-year-old Ava is thrilled when she lands a part in a play based on the true story of orphans sent to Canada in the 1800s to work on farms. But is she good enough to hold her own in a professional production? As the rehearsal pressures crank up, Ava struggles with her character, with the vocal demands of outdoor theater and with the annoying ego of her cast mate Kiefer. But as she learns more about the historical Lily on which her part is based, things begin to fall into place.
Then one bad decision jeopardizes Ava's chances of being able to perform on opening night.
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He Who Dreams
by Melanie Florence
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Juggling soccer, school, friends and family leaves John with little time for anything else.
One day at the local community center, following the sound of drums, he stumbles into an Indigenous dance class. Before he knows what's happening, John finds himself stumbling through beginner classes with a bunch of little girls, skipping soccer practice and letting his other responsibilities slide. When he attends a powwow and witnesses a powerful performance, he realizes that he wants to be a dancer more than anything. But, the nearest class for boys is at the Native Cultural Center in the city, and he still hasn't told his family or friends about his new passion. If he wants to dance, he will have to stop hiding. Between the mocking of his teammates and the hostility of the boys in his dance class, John must find a way to balance and embrace both the Irish and Cree sides of his heritage.
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Totally Unrelated
by Tom Ryan
Part of the Orca Limelights series
Neil plays guitar with his family's band, the Family McClintock, even though he can't stand the Celtic music they play, he doesn't dance, he hates the outfits, and every single performance reminds him that he isn't as talented as the rest of the family.
When his buddy Bert convinces him to form a rock band and enter a local talent show, Neil's playing improves and everyone notices, including a girl who shares his musical interests. He starts to think that all those years of practice might come in handy after all. But it all comes to a head when Neil has to choose between an important gig with the family band and the talent show. He's only sure of one thing: whatever he decides to do, he's going to be letting someone down.
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