NARRATOR：

Listen to a conversation between a student and a university activities coordinator.

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

I understand your problem, but the upper level of the student center isn't available for the time being.

FEMALE STUDENT：

But my dance group has a performance coming up.

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

I've been talking with people all day long who are in the exact same situation.

There are at least a dozen dance and drama groups on campus, and they're all scrambling for rehearsal space right now.

FEMALE STUDENT：

But I made this reservation last June, before leaving for the summer.

No one said anything about construction...

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

That's because no one knew that the remodeling was going to run over into the beginning of the school year.

The builders are just way behind schedule.

For a while, we weren't even sure that the dining hall on the lower level would be ready for the start of the semester.

So, it could've been a lot worse.

FEMALE STUDENT：

So when will...

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

The whole upper level will be ready in six weeks: the rehearsal rooms, the game room, the computer center...

FEMALE STUDENT：

Six weeks? That's not going to help me.

Our performance is in five weeks.

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

[sympathetically] Ah, are you part of the program they planned for Parents' Weekend?

FEMALE STUDENT：

Yeah. The thing is we're a tap dancing group, and we need to practice on hard floors, preferably wood.

We can practice on carpet at first, but ... It's important for us to be able to hear our feet hit the floor.

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

Interesting. Uh, because of the rhythm, huh?

FEMALE STUDENT：

Yeah, because the tapping becomes part of the music.

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

...So the floors are very important.

FEMALE STUDENT：

Exactly. And just about everywhere on campus has carpeting.

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

Well, there's always the stage at the student theater.

Though it's a long shot. We can look at the schedule. There might be some odd hours free.

FEMALE STUDENT：

What about in town?

Do you think the university could help us rent a rehearsal space in a commercial dance studio in town, given the situation?

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

[dubiously] That's not really my call.

I can reserve rehearsal and performance spaces on campus for you, but, uh... off campus...

FEMALE STUDENT：

So who would I talk to? The dance department?

MALE ACTIVITIES COORDINATOR：

Look, let's check the theater schedule first.