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The AUDIENCE springs from their seats in THUNDEROUS APPLAUSE. Then boom—
THE NICHOLAS BROTHERS explode onto the stage from the opposite wings as if shot from a cannon.
Then they slide in a full split, meeting miraculously at Center Stage, in front of an elaborate backdrop of the twinkling NEW YORK CITY SKYLINE at night.
The AUDIENCE ROARS with approval and APPLAUSE.
HAROLD and FAYARD spring effortlessly to their feet and begin tap dancing zestfully, with beaming smiles and graceful hand flourishes. (APPLAUSE.)
They are magicians of the stratosphere: whirling on a dime like spinning tops; then, side by side, leaping high in the air with arms and legs extended parallel to the ground; landing in a crouching position and kicking up their heels like a pair of mad steppe-ing Cossacks. (APPLAUSE.)
They tap dance up the sides of the huge plywood replica of the EMPIRE STATE BUILDING and flip over backwards into full splits.
Then they rise to their feet and begin leapfrogging over one another, ending with HAROLD sliding between FAYARD’s legs in a full split and springing up like a puppet attached to a string. (APPLAUSE.)