03x13 - Alice Twinkle Toes/Martha Fails the Course

[bunniefuu]

♪ Martha was an average dog

♪ She went... and... and...
(barking, growls)

♪ When she ate
some alphabet soup ♪

♪ Then what happened
was bizarre. ♪

On the way to Martha's stomach,
the letters lost their way.

They traveled to her brain,
and now...

♪ She's got a lot to say

♪ Now she speaks...

How now, brown cow?

♪ Martha speaks

♪ Yeah, she speaks
and speaks and speaks ♪

♪ And speaks and speaks.

What's a caboose?

When are we eating again?

♪ Martha speaks...

Hey, Joe, what do you know?

My name's not Joe.

♪ She's not always right,
but still that Martha speaks. ♪

Hi, there.

♪ She's got a voice,
she's ready to shout ♪

♪ Martha will tell you
what it's all about ♪

♪ Sometimes wrong,
but seldom in doubt ♪

♪ Martha will tell you
what it's all about ♪

♪ That dog's unique...

Testing, one, two.

♪ Hear her speak

♪ Martha speaks and speaks
and speaks and speaks and... ♪

♪ Communicates, enumerates

♪ Elucidates, exaggerates

♪ Indicates and explicates

♪ Bloviates and overstates
and... ♪

(panting)

♪ ...hyperventilates!

♪ Martha, to reiterate

Martha speaks!
♪ Martha speaks.

(piano plays)

Hello there.
Welcome.

Today's words are
all about movement.

You'll hear things like:

♪ Graceful and beautiful

♪ Smooth and agile

Whoa!

♪ Clumsy and klutzy

So stay tuned for a very moving
episode of Martha Speaks.

MRS. CLUSKY:
Now, class,

I want you to be
on your best behavior.

It isn't every day we have
a ballet company come and visit.

This is so exciting.

I've never seen a real,
live ballet before.

I saw my cousin
D.D.'s recital

at the Twinkle Toes
Academy of Dance,

but I'm not sure
that counts.

That looks more like
a counting horse.

A counting horse.
I wish.

What is the square root of four?

Uh...

(clops twice)

Two!

TD, no horses in the classroom.

Hasta la vista, g*ng!

I wish I had a horse to
get me out of this ballet.

Yawn city.

Oh, I think you'll
love the ballet, Alice.

It's an extremely
difficult sport.

How is dancing a sport?

It's very athletic.

And it takes a lot
of coordination.

Coordination?
Yes.

When you're able to move
different parts of your body

together in a smooth way,
it's called coordination.

Does ballet have any
tackling or field goals?

Ah, no.

I rest my case.

(music plays)

I still don't see how you can
call ballet a sport.

That's like calling school
summer vacation.

I saw a show on TV

where they proved
a ballet dancer

was just as fit
as a linebacker.

No way.

Really.
And it said lots of athletes,

like football players
or baseball players,

take ballet to improve
their balance.

Really?

(grunts, groans)

I'm athletic, but next
to Alice, I'm a klutz.

Alice?

Are you okay?

Me? Sure. Why?

You're popping up and down
like a jack in the box.

Oh. Uh...

I'm trying to get that thing
on the top shelf.

I can't quite reach it.

Swimming goggles?

What do you need
those for?

I have sensitive eyes.

Uh, see ya.

How can she see
in those things?

Whoa!

Ugh!

(groans)

Why am I such a klutz?

MRS. BOXWOOD:
So, how was the ballet?

Did you like it?

It was okay.

The dancers
were really graceful.

Not as graceful as professional
wrestlers, but close.

(laughs)

Alice went gaga for it.

She was all "Yaaaaaaaaay."

I did not go "gaga."

Did so.

Did not.

Well, that's good.

'Cause dancers have
to be coordinated.

If you danced,
you'd be all...

La, la, la...

Ooh! Sorry.

Oh! Excuse me.

Ooh! Sorry.
Whoa...!

I can be coordinated
when I want to be.

Just watch me.

Whoa...!

(thuds)

(laughing)

Here come the dancers.

Just because I liked the ballet,
doesn't mean I want to do it.

Ugh! Ow!

(sighs)

You should've seen it, Nelson.

They were so beautiful.

It was like watching a dream.

(yawns):
I wish I could be graceful
like that.

(piano plays)

(alarm rings)

Aah!

Oh, who am I kidding?

Even in my dreams, I'm a klutz.

I'll never be a dancer.

I cannot get that ballet
out of my head.

Me neither.

Last night, I danced my way
through all my chores.

♪ Da, duh-duh-duh-duh,
da, duh, da ♪

Whoa!

Whoa!

♪ Da, duh-da-da-da
duh-da-da... ♪

Dad!

Whoa...!

Alice, you do it.

Yeah, you're
so athletic.

You have much better balance
on skates than I do.

Balance?
I don't have balance.

"Balance" means you can
stay on your feet

and not wobble or fall down.

I'm a klutz.

Aah...! Only when
you're on your feet.

What TD means is, you're really
graceful on the ice.

Yeah, it's kind of the
opposite of everybody else.

Come on, try it.

Whoa!

(laughing)

Here come the dancers.

CAROLINA:
I was such

a klutz today.

If ballet works for
football players

and for baseball players,

maybe it works for
hockey players, too.

Hey, maybe we should all take
a ballet class together?

I'm game, if Alice is.

Alice...?

(piano plays)

Plié, relevé, plié, relevé

and pas de bourrée...

again.

Plié, relevé,

plié, relevé

and pas de bourrée.

Come on, try it, Alice.
It's fun.

Oh. Uh... I can't.

I've got a Charlie horse
in my leg.

(gasps):
You have a horse
named Charlie in there?

How?

Alice doesn't really
have a horse in her leg.

It's an expression.

It just means
she's got a muscle cramp.

I got to go.
See you later.

Huh.

(humming ballet music)

Ugh!

I wish I could quit thinking
about ballet.

(ballet music playing)

Are you watching
ballet?

No.

You were so.

I heard it.

How do you know?

Have you memorized all the
ballet music in the world?

No, I just know what
boring sounds like.

(gasps)

Beautiful.

Oh, look at you.

I bet you're quite
the dancer.

Well, I, uh...

(giggles)

Oh.

Stand back.

My sister
is a little clumsy.

This girl is not clumsy.

"Clumsy" means someone
falls down a lot

or stumbles into things.

She is the opposite
of clumsy.

I mean she moves
so smoothly.

And she's so
beautiful to watch.

Oh...!
Oh, my goodness.

May I help you?

Uh... Okay.

Why don't you
try them out?

Hmm. What do you know?

Aren't they beautiful?

(meows)

Okay. First position.

Second position.

This is easy!

Third position.

Fourth position.

This can't be right.

It feels really awkward.

Does it look awkward?

Oh!
(meows)

Why am I asking you?

You probably don't even
know what "awkward" means.

(meows)

Awkward is when
you do something,

and it looks goofy
and feels even worse.

"Keep your bottom tucked under,
your chest lifted,

and your knees straight."

They've got to be kidding!

Hey, look, Nelson!
I'm doing it.

Whoa!

Hey, Alice.

And this is
really awkward.

Why do you have to be sneaky?

If you like ballet,
you like ballet.

I'm sure your mom
would let you take classes.

If I took
a ballet class,

Ronald would never
let me live it down.

Alice Boxwood.

(audience applauding)

(screams)

Here come the dancers!

Whoa!

Here come the dancers!

Oh!

Here come the dancers!

Everybody's awkward when
they first start something.

That's why
you take classes.

To get better.

Yeah. If you
want something,

I think you should
just go for it.

As TD says, "You can't
let a little thing

"like total
public humiliation

stand between you
and a good time."

(all laughing)

Mom, I've been thinking,

and I don't care
what Ronald says,

but I wish
he wouldn't say anything

because I already feel
like a jerk,

but even if he does
say something,

I want to take ballet classes.

And I know what
you're thinking.

It's hopeless, and I'm a klutz,
and I'm awkward,

and I'll never be able
to keep my balance,

and I'll stumble
all over the place,

but I want to try.

Ronald thought
you'd say that.

He did?

He said he thought
you really wanted

to take ballet classes,

and he made me get you this.

Mom! Thank you!

Oh, it's so beautiful!

I got you a leotard, too.

I had it made special.

You're a pretty good athlete
when you practice.

I figure you'll get the hang
of dancing eventually.

But, in the meantime...

Thanks.

Here come the dancers!

Hello. I thought
I would show you

some home movies that
will help demonstrate

the difference
between movements

that are graceful
and movements that are awkward.

Oops!

That was graceful.

Whoa!

That was awkward.

Graceful.

Wha-oa-aoh!

Awkward.

Graceful.

Argh!

Uh... Awkward.

(meows)

You'll have
to excuse my assistant.

He's not used
to feeling awkward.

(crowd cheering)

MARTHA:
Jumping. Boring!

Running. Boring!

Balancing. Boring!

Grr! Why isn't there
anything good on?

It's some international
sports games thing.

None of the usual shows
are running.

Oh! I don't like sports shows!

SINGERS ON TV:
♪ Sporty animals,
animals doing sports ♪

♪Sporty animals
Now that's more like it!

♪ Animals doing sports!

Wow!

You just said you
didn't like sports shows.

That was people. This is dogs!

Dogs make everything
fun to watch.

Flippin' fajitas! What is that?

What you're seeing now
is an agility course.

Agility course?

What's that?
Beats me.

You may ask yourself,
"What is an agility course?"

"Agility" means moving
quickly and easily.

And "course" means a place
where you play a sport.

Like playing golf
on a golf course,

or racing cars
on a racecourse.

Now let's watch
while our nimble friend, Rudy,

speeds through
the agility course.

He quickly jumps
through the hoop.

He easily clears that hurdle.

That takes real flexibility,
folks.

Uh...
What?

I was going to ask
what flexibility meant,

but he'll probably explain it.

"Flexibility"
is a fancy way of saying

you can bend easily,
like this straw.

This show is
so informative.

Martha's putting on speed!

What flexibility, folks!

Balancing like that
takes real skill!

(crowd applauding,
whistling and cheering)

Zowie! Where do I sign up?

Why not?

Because.

Because why?

Because I don't think
you'd like it.

Why not?

Because you're not exactly
the most athletic dog in town.

Helen, being an agility dog
is my lifelong dream.

I thought your
lifelong dream

was to be
a firehouse dog.

Dog dreams are
like cable TV--

there's always more
than one thing on.

Oh, all right.

I'll ask Mrs. Clusky.

Maybe she knows where
there's an agility course.

As a matter of fact,
I've got one in my yard.

You do?

Mm-hmm. I had
it custom-made

especially
for Francois.

You're welcome to
try it if you like.

Speed is important,

but you also must be nimble.

And flexible.

Good boy, Francois.

It's very challenging.

Challenging? "Challenging"
means something is hard

and takes a lot of work.

What's challenging
about running in a circle

and jumping over rails?

Oh, there's more
to it than that.

Oh, right.

It's also
a lot of fun!

Okay, Helen, I'm ready!
Let's go!

Promise you won't be upset

if you don't move
as smoothly as Francois.

I mean, it is your first time.
Smooth?

Oh, I'm smooth.

What makes you think
I won't be smooth?

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's...

Argh!

(gasping)

Argh!

(barking)

Argh!

No reason.

See? I'm smooth.

I'm speedy.

Watch out!

Argh!

I'm okay!

Whoops! Huh? What? Huh? Ooh!

Argh!

Whoo... whoo...

Argh! Ow!

Oh!

Argh!

(yipping)

(grunting)

Ow!

(grunting)

(goofy grunting)

(yapping)

Clumsy sausage?

Who are you calling
a clumsy sausage?

(yapping)

At least she didn't
fall down again.

There you are!

Feel better now?

Oh, the indignity.

(Martha whining)

(continues whining)

(wind whistling)

(wood creaking)

(pounding steps)
Huh?

(pounding footsteps continue)

(gasps)

♪

(gasps)

(gasping)

(whimpering)

(yelling)

(grunts)

(gasps)

♪

(gasps)

(laughing yaps)

(laughing)

(all laughing)

HELEN:
Martha! Martha!

Hey.
(relieved sigh)

Chasing rabbits?

Just being clumsy.
Really clumsy.

Were you dreaming about
the agility course again?

Yuh-huh. Francois
was right there,

laughing at me.

I bet all dogs fall down
on the first time.

You just need practice.

No. Francois is right.

I'm a clumsy sausage.

I'm never going to move
in public ever again.

Ever?

(panting)

Sure is a nice day for a walk,

isn't it, Martha?

(whimpers)

Come and get it!
(barking)

(groans)

(grunting, panting)

(soft grunt)

(frustrated sigh)

So, why isn't
Martha moving?

She fell down in
front of another dog,

and he made fun of her.

If I refused to move just 'cause
I fell down in front of someone,

I'd have stopped trying
when I was about six months old.

Once I fell down just
standing still in an empty room.

(grunts)

At least the room was empty.

There wasn't anyone around
to call you a...

clumsy sausage.

You fell down--
it's not a big deal.

Not everyone
is naturally nimble.

Nimble?
Yeah. It's like "agile."

It means you move
easily and quickly.

Whoa!

Hey! I didn't fall!

That was pretty
nimble of me.

Maybe ballet classes
are paying off.

Uh, Alice...
(grunts)

I'm okay.

(barking)

Sure you don't want
to dive in, Martha?

Sausages don't swim.

I'm really worried about Martha.

I'm sure she's not
really that clumsy.

Agility stuff is
just challenging.

Yeah, like learning
to ride a bike.

(groans):
Oh, remember how quickly
TD learned to ride?

I know-- I felt
like such a klutz.

It took me forever
to get rid of my
training wheels.

(sighs):
I wish I could
get rid of mine.

You've still got them?

Uh-huh. All this time,

I thought there was
something wrong with me,

but then I realized
my bike is too tall.

Too tall?

Yeah. When I'm standing still,

my feet can't touch the ground.

It feels really awkward.

My parents are trading it in
for a smaller one.

Hey! Maybe that's
Martha's problem!

She... needs a
smaller bike?

No. She needs
a bigger agility course!

Francois' course was
custom-made to fit him.

He's much smaller
than Martha.

That's probably why she
got stuck in the tunnel.

She's not uncoordinated,
she's just too big.

Exactly!

If we make an agility
course that fits her,

she should be able to move
through it more smoothly.

♪

HELEN:
Keep your eyes
closed, Martha.

We've got a surprise for you.

Okay, you can open
your eyes now.

Ta-da! & ALICE:
(gasps)

Isn't it great?

It's your very own

customized
agility course.

We figured you couldn't move
smoothly on Francois' course

because it didn't
fit you right.

I bet you'll be very
agile on this course.

Well, aren't you
going to try it out?

I bet you'll be much more
coordinated on this one.

I can't-- I'd only fall down
and embarrass myself.

Take it
from a klutz

like me-- you can't worry about
what other people think of you.

Like TD always says...

BOTH:
"You can't let a little thing
like total humiliation

stand between you
and a good time."

Come on, Martha, try it.

Nope.

(barking)

You want to
try, Skits?

(Skits barking)
Why not?

Maybe I'll try it, too.

ALICE:
Yeah. Maybe
I will, too.

(gasping)

(grunting)

(laughing)

(panting, barking)

(grunting)

(both laughing)

(barking)

You guys make messing up
look fun.

It is!
Come on, try it!

(barks twice)

Ooh... make way!

MARTHA:
Clumsy sausage coming through!

(both laughing)

(Skits barking)

(Skits whining)

(chuckles)

Hello. Welcome
to our... stakeout.

Mom has some "steaks," and
we want to take them "out."

(barks)
Exactly!

Out of the house
and into our bellies!

It's a tough job,
but my nimble friend

is up to the
challenge. Watch.

MARTHA:
Skits nimbly runs
across the yard.

He nimbly avoids tripping
on the skateboard.

He nimbly clears the bushes

and jumps through the window.

(barks, whimpers)

(thud)

(whines)

Skits! You are
in trouble...

MARTHA:
And makes a nimble retreat.

Uh, are we still rolling?

Cut. Cut!

Boy, that was awkward.

(gasps,
strikes cymbal)

Oh, hi. Were you nimble enough
to catch all our moving words?

Why don't we speed
through them again.

When you're able to move

different parts of your body
together in a smooth way,

it's called "coordination."

"Balance" means
you can stay on your feet

and not wobble or fall down.

"Challenging" means something
is hard and takes a lot of work.

Nimble?
Yeah. It's like "agile."

It means you move
easily and quickly.

Yes!
See you next time!

To dig up some more fun words
and games, visit pbs

♪ Who's that dog? ♪

♪ Who's
that dog? ♪

♪ Dog, d-d-dog, d-dog. ♪

That dog is Rugby.

My name is Allison, and
Rugby is a reading partner.

"Martha's family had a wonderful
party trick."

Rugby listens to me
reading to him.

"Her pals were scratching,
sniffing or snoozing."

A dog will pay attention.

A dog won't say
you're bad at reading.

They just roll with it.

"She was..."

♪ He's that dog... ♪
♪ Dog, d-d-dog, d-dog. ♪