The dancing shoes

Professor Kompressor was not a dancer. He was, in fact, quite severely rhythmically challenged. He could not even clap in time. This did not usually matter because he was an inventor not a ballroom performer.

It came as a shock to the Professor when Maud asked him to join her for a dinner in the village hall... followed by an evening of dancing.

It seemed inconceivable that this was happening.

But... Maud seemed so excited that he could not say no.

He would have to deal with it.

It was a tough nut to crack, and the Professor did not have much time so he had to crack on. The situation required invention, but what kind?

Movement was key. He needed to make sure the feet moved in a coordinated fashion without getting tangled up.

“The shoes!”

If he could get the shoes to guide the feet, then the rest of him could simply follow.

“A pair of carefully designed dancing shoes, that’s what I need,” the Professor decided. “Surely, that can’t be too difficult?”

The Professor had a lot of experience with robots and thinking machines, so the construction of the dancing shoes was indeed not very difficult. The main challenge involved the programming of the various dances. This required information about complicated steps and moves. The Professor did not have the first clue about such things. He had to look them up in a book, but this was not the kind of book he had in his library. He had to order one from the library in the village.

The night of the event he was dressed in his finest suit. Maud looked beautiful in a dark green dress. The village hall was packed with people as the band struck up the first tune.

“Shall we, Professor?” asked Maud.

The Professor was nervous but it was too late to back out. He took Maud by the hand. The band was playing a waltz. As the Professor tweaked the remote control he had hidden in his pocket, the shoes recognised the music and gently guided him across the floor.

It went swimmingly.

After a couple of tunes they stopped for a drink. Maud was surprised that the Professor was such an accomplished dancer.

When the music started again the Professor stuck his hand in his pocket to adjust he remote control. As he was fiddling with the dials a dancing couple bumped into him. He only lost balance for a moment but managed to drop the remote on the floor... and step on it.

All of a sudden, the shoes had a mind of their own.

The band was playing a tango...

... but the Professor was dancing a rumba. He dragged a frightened Maud across the floor, throwing her this way and that. She held on for dear life.

Moments later the shoes changed to something wild, possibly an African war dance. The Professor’s feet were drumming the floor, his arms were waving like windmills, people were clambering to get out of his way.

There was no stopping him.

At least not until the batteries ran out.