Pictured on top is the old Britney (obviously)
All afternoon, everyone's been waiting for Britney to rehearse for her VMA performance. Britney Watch, as you might call it, takes the form of excruciatingly long periods of waiting punctuated by brief bursts of news, even when nothing is actually happening yet. Britney's in the air, Britney's landed, Britney's in the building. There's the anticipation (what will she be like?), the worry (what if she doesn't show?), and the doubt (can she still pull it off?). But if the skeptics saw what a few of us at MTV News were privileged to witness late Friday afternoon (September 7) at the Pearl Concert Theater in the Palms Resort Casino, they would doubt no more.
Britney as a tabloid figure has loomed so large of late, it's hard to imagine that there was a time when it was just Britney the performer. Britney the dancer. Britney the star. And while she wasn't yet at full steam — glimpses of what she used to be and what she could still become were there even in these early rehearsals.
"OK, here we go. Three, two, one, track," a female voice announces over the PA system in the Pearl. Spotlights sweep back and forth, strobes flash, and a silver-gray curtain parts. Spears stands to the side, in jeans and a white tank top that reads "James," hat tipped over her face. The song starts, but she turns her back during the opening line, "It's Britney, bitch," striking a pose of pure attitude.
She's flanked by a few dancers, who at first seem asleep, crouched low, but come awake once Britney drops the "bitch" line. More come out as Britney sings, "Gimme more," until she's got more than a dozen onstage.
With each run-through, a choreographer gives Britney more steps to weave in as she gets more comfortable with the routine — and as she gets more comfortable, that white tank top edges up to expose even more midriff. Her dancers get more suggestive, pulling and pushing and dragging each other across the stage. But Britney remains dominant, treating one like a boy toy, stepping over him, and tossing him aside when she's done with him. That part's easy — a move that takes a little longer to learn is to fall into a column of her dancers, who push her back standing up, like one of those trust exercises you do at camp.
Well she showed up, and she does have an illusionist to help her appear.. talented?
source: MTV News
