after the painting, Ball in Zurich by Marcel Janco
The couples join hands and hold each other
with arms either bent or straight as they spin
around the dance floor. The men to a man
are dressed in tuxedo black, while the women
wear mainly white ball gowns. Some dip,
others gaze into their partner’s eyes, while
all along the walls the single men and women
hunger for their turn to be called. On the stage,
the piano thunders past the cellos and violins
as if the music were on the attack. On cue,
the floorboards rise and fall into pleated peaks
and valleys that only true lovers can leap.
And they do, flipping multiple cartwheels
even while wearing sharp stiletto heels.
