The First Day

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## Credits

### Director

Randall Thorne

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**"The First Day"** is the first episode of Season 1 of *Backstage* and the first episode overall. It premiered on March 18, 2016.

## Synopsis

"Talented teens chase their dreams while navigating life at a prestigious school of the arts. In the opener, best friends Vanessa and Carly embark on their first day as ballet dancers at school. Meanwhile, singer Alya struggles with stage fright in front of her music class."

## Plot

Standing outside of Keaton School of the Arts, Vanessa is approached and hugged by Carly. Before entering the building, the two conclude that they are as ready as they'll ever be for the school. When they enter the building, Vanessa expresses her nervousness to Carly. Consequently, the two reminisce on how nerve-wracking their third-grade recital was, after Vanessa admits that she is more nervous about Keaton than the she was about the recital. Carly assures Vanessa that she is amazing and wouldn't have got in if she wasn't, however, Vanessa says that she wouldn't have got in if Carly hadn't made her apply. Suddenly, a girl holding a camera approaches the girls and perfectly guesses that they are dancers with a concentration in ballet, then prods them to say their names to the camera. Carly and Vanessa comply. The girl welcomes the two introduces herself as Julie Maslany, the student president. Suddenly, Carly opens a door labelled "DANCE STUDIO" and beckons Vanessa to accompany her; the two marvel at the talented dancers inside. A few seconds after observing, a girl shuts the door. Carly excitedly confesses that the dancers must be the Primas, the best dancers in the school. Just then, a boy who Vanessa calls cute walks by. Julie dubs him as a freshman in the music program who is a be drummer, despite carrying an electric guitar, as well as a singer. The boy, whose name is Miles, remains unresponsive. Moments later, a girl with a guitar on her back walks around and Julie asks her if she is okay, as looks like she is in shock. Julie assures her that the first day of school is always intimidating and that every other student feels the same way, but some are just better at hiding it then others. The girl, named Alya, thanks Julie for the advice and claims that she will remember that, but confesses that it is easier said than done. An audible singing voice begins to drift down the hall and Julie, exasperated, dubs the voice as Scarlett the Starlet's. As Alya passes by Scarlett, she asks herself what she is doing there, causing a boy who is running by to assure her that they are conquering the world. Soon after, Alya bumps into another student.

In a dance studio, a teacher welcomes the dance students. She describes Keaton as the key to their future and says that whether they will be lead to success or failure is up to them. In contrast, another teacher tells the music students by saying that their time at Keaton will be the best four years of their lives. The dance teacher tells the dancers that who they are today will not be the person that graduates in four years, while the music teacher tells the musicians that those sitting around them are their family, during which Alya enters the class. The dance teacher asserts that statistics show that only half of them will make it to graduation and that one person won't even make it until Christmas. The music teacher assures his students that if they need assistance that his door is always open, whereas the dance teacher tells the dancers to go to their mother if they need a shoulder to cry on as they are constantly being tested and one small mistake could mean the end. Both teachers tell the students to showcase what they are capable of.

A girl sings in front of her fellow students. Jax, the boy that Alya bumped into, asks Miles if the girl performing is the girl from the T.V. show about the robot, and Miles replies that he doesn't watch TV because he doesn't have one due to what he confesses to be a complicated situation. Jax then asks Alya if the girl performing looks familiar to her and Alya recognizes her as the character Chase from the TV show *Chase and Chance*. The girl finishes singing to a round of applause. The music teacher then asks Alya to perform next. Alya walks up to the front of the class and struggles to perform, causing the classmate who went before her to ridicule Alya and call her an amateur. Alya attempts to perform again but is interrupted by the girl, who remarks that she couldn't hear whether her name was Alya or Elsa. As a result, the rest of the students, except for Miles, begin laughing. Alya remains frozen at the front.

In the dance studio, the dance teacher calls Vanessa up to perform. Vanessa performs a ballet routine that the teacher says isn't the worse that she has seen. When Vanessa resumes her position at the ballet barre, a boy congratulates her and reveals that the comment Ms. Helsweel (who he nicknames Hell on Wheels), the dance teacher, made is one of the best that has been said by her. Despite this, Vanessa remains in disbelief that Ms. Helsweel's comment could have been a compliment. The boy introduces himself as Sasha and Vanessa and Carly introduce themselves to him as Vee and Cee. Sasha tells them that this is his second year taking the class (which is a long story), and that he knows that Ms. Helsweel thought that Vanessa was amazing. Sasha tells the girls that after the class, Helsweel will pick one lucky freshman to take an elective with her and her fourth year ballet class, The Primas, which is a really big deal. Carly is asked to dance next. After dancing for a bit, Helsweel cuts the music and tells her that that will be all. When she resumes her position at the ballet barre, Carly asks Sasha to decode what happened, although Sasha admits that he has never seen that look on Helsweel's face before.

In Production class, Jax approaches Kit and introduces himself as DJ G, then hands her an invitation for a house party that he is DJing. Jax tells Kit that they are partners for an assignment, but that it doesn't thrill him because he is a solo artist. He continues to brag about his alleged skills as an artist. Jax deems the assignment, which is creating a sample mix using files, child's play.

Alya attempts to find a seat for lunch. She is approached by Denzel, who had told her that they are conquering the world, who dutifully asks her if she is conquering the world yet. Alya says that she isn't and the boy tells her that she needs to chill. Alya eventually takes a seat near Miles who reasserts that she should relax. Alya asks him if he is nervous and he claims that he is, but that meditation helps him; he eventually asserts that he wasn't serious but that he got her to smile nonetheless. Alya confesses that she is in trouble, as Miles is super cute and really nice. Miles prods Alya to sing and she eventually does, but stops when she hears laughter coming from the table behind her. She overhears the girl from the T.V. show claiming that she doesn't need to be at Keaton and is only there to better herself and says that Alya (who she calls Queen Frozen) doesn't have what it takes to be at the school and will be the Christmas drop-out for sure. Miles assures Alya that the girl doesn't know what she is talking about, but Alya storms off nonetheless.

Meanwhile, the list of who has made it onto the Primas has gone up. It turns out that Helsweel, as predicted by Sasha, chose Vanessa to be a Prima. Carly congratulates Vanessa, but it is clear that she is jealous.

Jax is struggling to make a sample mix, but still keeps up his overconfident persona.

After class, Vanessa asks Carly to meet her after school at Sienna's Ice Cream Shop to which Carly accepts. Just then, a girl approaches the two and asks for Vanessa. She pulls her aside and, according to Carly's confessional, asks her to go to the private National Ballet rehearsal of Sleeping Beauty by Tchaikovsky after school. Vanessa is thrilled to go, but remembers that she is supposed to meet Carly for ice cream.

Jax continues to struggle with making a demo mix even though it is due in two minutes. When the teacher approaches him and Kit, Kit hands him her phone and headset, having produced a mix on her own. The teacher commends the mix and the bell rings soon after. As Kit leaves, Jax tries to ask her how she did that, but she leaves without answering.

Alya leaves a message on her mom's phone saying that she made a mistake in going to Keaton, misses home, and is therefore returning. Miles emerges after Alya hears a noise, and hesitantly reveals that he heard the whole conversation. Miles asks her if she is really dropping out and Alya tells him that she is; she tells him that he can tell Bianca—the TV actress who had ridiculed her—that the statistic is wrong this year, winter is coming early and "Queen Elsa" is dropping out before Christmas. Although, Miles is sure that Alya will not drop out because her voice is too good. Alya responds that Miles doesn’t know her and leaves the room.

Jax listens to Kit's mix and then compliments her, thanks her, and apologizes to her when she appears in the halls.

Carly asks Vanessa if she wants to meet at the steps after school, although Vanessa tells her that she cannot go for a reason that Carly has already guessed. Carly appears to be supportive of her and lets her go. Before Vanessa leaves, she assures Carly that she is the best, but Carly mutters under breath that she isn't the best, Vanessa is.

Alya re-enters the music room and asks the teacher if she can try again to which he agrees. This time around, Alya plays her song and sings the song perfectly.

## Trivia

* Etta Helsweel was a Prima ballerina for the National Ballet from 1975 - 1980.
* Bianca has starred in many TV shows, including *Chase and Chance*.
* Sasha writes Keaton's blog called TMK (Too Much Keaton).

## Cast

### Main

* Josh Bogert as Miles
* Matthew Isen as Jax
* Kyal Legend as Julie
* Mckenzie Small as Scarlett
* Colin Petierre as Sasha
* Devyn Nekoda as Vanessa
* Alyssa Trask as Carly
* Adrianna Di Liello as Jenna
* Isiah Hall as Denzel
* Aviva Mongillo as Alya
* Julia Tomasone as Bianca
* Romy Weltman as Kit
* Jane Moffat as Ms. Helsweel
* Chris Hoffman as Mr. Park

### Recurring

* Madison MacGregor as Cassandra
* Tyler Simmons as a Grade 9 Music student
* Genevieve Galea as a Grade 9 Dance student
* Christopher N.L. Armstrong as the Production Teacher

## Songs

* "Going Home"
* "Breaking Hearts and Taking Names"
* "Letting It Go"
* "Heartbeats (Acoustic)"

## Gallery

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## References

1. ↑ Watch Backstage Season 1 Episode 1: The First Day | TVGuide.cpom. TV Guide. Retrieved on March 29, 2016.