Genevieve's POV
I take my time showering and removing my make up before getting dressed. I throw on a leotard and shorts not wanting to melt during rehearsal. I put together a quick dance bag with some spare clothes, a towel, an empty notebook and a water bottle before throwing on my Chuck Taylor's and heading out. The clock says rehearsal starts in 25 minutes and it's a 15 minute drive back to Paisley Park.
Once I arrive I pull into the lot and there are a few other cars. Grabbing my bag, I make my way inside. I hear screaming from the corridor and decide that heading that way is my best bet to find someone. I walk slowly staying on the balls of my feet in case I need to turn and run. I peek into the room and see the entire band tuning their instruments. The screaming continues somewhere down the hall.
"Hey, Genevieve." Miko smiles walking up to give me a hug.
"Hey, how can you all focus with all that yelling going on?"
"It's Mayte. She was here when we all got here." I walk around greeting everyone and one by one they divulge what they know about the situation.
"She's been calling him a cheater for the passed 10 minutes." Dr. Fink adds from behind his keyboards.
"Sounds like she might've found some proof though." Andre adds while giving me a hug. "She said she found a belt in his room." My face drops realizing that's the one part of my outfit I didn't take with me. I knew I was missing something. A series of quick footsteps approach. Mayte enters first followed by Prince and Ronnie. We all turn and face them as they come in. Prince and I make contact and he stops in tracks as Mayte approaches me.
"Is this trash yours?"
"Yes, that 100% Italian leather belt belongs to me."
"What was it doing in my husband's room?"
"Can you even still call him that?" I scoff with a raised eyebrow. If she was a cartoon steam would be be spewing from her ears.
"What I call him is my business."
"Where my clothes are is my business." I can sense the shock in the air. Trust is I don't like this catty and I like seeing her sweat. She knows she has nothing on mead that's why she fights so hard. "Why did he say it was in his room?" I ask looking over at Prince smirking.
"He said you left it at the party last night and that he was holding onto it until you came back."
"Oh yea. We talked about it this morning." The words feel slick in my mouth. Ronnie clears his throat in the distance suppressing a laugh. I smile before reaching for my belt.
"Don't touch me."
"Wouldn't dream of it. Just want my belt back." I snatch it out of her hands and she swats at me with her other hand. Her hand lands on my right breast and she immediately removes it in disgust.
"Wanna grab the left one too? I only like even numbers." Laughter echoes throughout the room. Humiliated she storms out of the room followed by Ronnie. Once they leave Prince shuts the door and walks up to me.
"You're cold for that." He whispers with a smile.
"She got what she deserved. She's lucky I didn't tell her the truth." I whisper back.
"Today, we're polishing older pieces. We've got some gigs coming up around the Midwest we need to be ready for. I just want you to watch today. Get a feel for how we run things." I nod and follow him toward the stage. I have a seat in the third row and dig through my bag for a notebook before scribbling some beginning notes.
Prince's POV
"Alright everybody. It's time to start hope everyone's warmed up and tuned by now. Genevieve has agreed to join The Revolution as our dancer/choreographer and another vocalist. She'll be spectating today to get a feel for how we usually run things. Expect choreography from her in a couple weeks. We're running our old tour set list for these shows in the Midwest. Set list is on the floor." He climbs on the stage and the intro to 1999 starts followed by Controversy. The songs meld perfectly and offers a great start to the concert. Lots of chanting makes the song perfect for audience participation.
Next, comes Let's Work. The song features a lot of subtle movements. I could amp them up to match the energy of the song. Prince jumps around a lot when he performs but it seems like he's locked in one place. He smiles down at me as sings but I can tell the smile isn't for me. I've worn a similar smile during rehearsals. He's picturing the way everything will feel with the crowd.
Little Red Corvette comes after that I can feel the concert shifting toward slower songs. This song is still high energy but a lot of its power hinges on the vocals. I take note of that and try to recall any of the dance I did last night. I smirk when I realize that he doesn't typically perform the bridge. Luckily his band is tight and was able to follow his lead.
He sits at the piano for Do Me Baby. The songs has more grit live than the studio version. I wonder if he even wants me to dance during this song. I think it could be cool if the focus was him.
Head comes next and I'm surprised by the nature of this song. My eyes go wide as I listen to the lyrics but I do my best to take notes on it anyway. I imagine a very dramatic number with Prince and I dancing wildly around the stage.
I scribble in my notebook any ideas and questions I have as I go.
Uptown, Lisa's solo, and How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore, leave me with more questions than answers so I decide to hold off on those until I can talk to Prince.
International Lovers is an interesting song. This song would make a good jazzy lyrical number. I note that a thin skirt could be a fun prop and sketch out a few designs I'd like to test.
1999 and D.S.M.R close out the set list bringing back the high energy from earlier. Both songs feature strong instrumentation. Several minutes go by without anyone saying a word. In those moments the instruments seem to talk directly to me. It takes a lot for me to sit still during those moments and I find myself pacing through the rows of seats to keep my focus. Once they finish he gives the band some critiques and tells everyone to take a 20 minute break. Most of them come down off the stage and take seats. I use this as a moment to test some of my ideas.
Prince grabs me as I walk passed him toward center stage.
Prince's POV
"What do you think?"
"I have some ideas. I just wanted to test a few things before I pitched them."
"What's in the notebook?"
"Just notes." I hold out my hand and I wait for her to give it to me. Without asking questions she puts it in my hand. I flip through it hoping to get an idea of what she wants to do. Her swooping handwriting fills the pages but so does diagrams. I analyze each one before opening my mouth.
"What's with the skirt?"
"I thought international lover could be a cool duet piece."
"What do you mean duet?"
"I mean we'd be dancing together. It won't be too demand so you'll still have the breath to sing but you'll need to support me in some of my tricks."
"Alright. What about all the arrows?"
"High energy fast, high energy slow, low energy fast, low energy slow. Helps me keep in mind my pacing."
"Why do we need to talk about spacing?"
"Most of the band stands still while they play. Every now and then they come up and join you but there's still several feet worth of stage left. You should use it?"
"Use it how?"
"I have plenty of ideas. I've noticed you tend to rock in place. You could ease some of that musical tension by moving around the stage. I'm sure the mic cords are long enough. Start by moving around with your mic and stand. I've seen you dance with it but don't be afraid to take it with you. We can build from there."
"Okay, what about correct his turns?"
"Give me your shoe."
"What?"
"Take off your shoe and give it to me." I sigh and bend over unzipping the boot on my foot before putting it in her hand. She begins to examine the underside of the shoe, running her pen over it and pressing on the heel. "What is this a four inch heel?"
"Yea." She nods and hands me shoe back.
"Okay watch me while I show you this." She moves the mic stand out of her way and stretches lightly as she speaks. "When you turn you're lifting your heel about this much off the ground and using your shoulders to provide all the momentum." She demonstrates the turn a few times showing me each direction. "You need to prep before your turns."
"Prep?"
"Yea so instead of me standing perfectly straight and just jerking my shoulder around. You're going to bend your knees and push off the floor a little. Try." I bend my knees and spin but it doesn't feel any easier. It feels unstable. I wobble out of the turn catching myself before I tumble. She immediately shakes her head. "Put all your weight on the foot you're going to keep on the ground. It'll stabilize you." She get down on the floor and begins to position my legs. "Which way are you gonna turn?"
"Right."
"Weight on your left foot. Then when you lift your foot pull straight into your knee." Once she stands I try again and am met with a notebook smack on the leg.
"Shit, what was that for?!"
"I said put your foot at your knee not your calf! Do it again!" I try again but meet the same fate.
"Okay, you're not gonna keep hitting me."
"Oh, hush. You like it. Stand on one foot." I roll my eyes and put my foot up. "Point your toes."
"I don't see why this matters. "
"If you want half asses turns and a mediocre performance that's up to you." I clench my jaw and do like she said. She corrects the angle of the bend in my knee then steps back for a second. "Stand on your toes. All the weight on the ball of your foot." I stand on my toes and she circles around me checking my posture. "Shoulders back. Think tall." She uses her hands to bend various parts of my body. Straightening my back, aligning my hips things like that before walking away. "Go ahead and hold that."
"Where you going?"
"I'm going to enjoy the last few minutes of this break but you go ahead and hold that for me." I return to my seat and take a few sips of my water. I see his leg begin to shake and his posture waver.
"Hold dat. Don't let that heel touch the ground. If it falls I will hit you with more den a notebook." He straightens up
"How long are you gonna make him hold it?" Dez asks and I shrug.
"He will do this every time we see each until it becomes second nature." I take another quick sip before standing and making my way back to the stage. His face is blank as I approach. I stand in front of him and smile wide. "You need to return to this position for every turn you do. Stretch out a little and then see how smooth it is." I put my leg down and shake out the leg I had been stepping on before trying for a spin. My leg seems to snap into place and as I spin on my toes. I gained so much momentum I was able to spin a few times. She places her hands on my shoulders to steady me as I finish. "We'll work on exits later but how did that feel."
"My leg feels a little stiff but it was definitely smoother."
"Do that pose with each leg for a few minutes everyday when you're just standing. I used to do mine while cooking or watching tv but find what works and it'll get easier with time."
"Alright y'all. Fun's over. Get back up here." I go back to my seat and keep taking notes as they do another run through.
Princes POV
As rehearsal wraps, I give my final notes and people start packing up. Miko walks up to me as other begin to make their way out.
"How you feeling?"
"You ever met someone that gets under your skin in a good way? Like they push all your buttons but somehow it always works out?"
"Yea, you." I hit his shoulder and he laughs.
"I'm serious. I think she might be what I need to get through this next album."
"How?"
"She doesn't treat me like I'm good at everything. She gives credit where credits is due but she isn't afraid to tell me what I need to work on. She doesn't boost my ego."
"Good. You're head is already big as shit." I give him a side eye and he laughs again.
"I'm just playing, man. I think she's pretty cool, too. She's can really stand her own. I thought y'all were gonna start scraping when she made you hold that pose." We both laugh before we make our way off the stage together as the last few people head out, leaving the three of us in the room. "
"I'll hit you up later to work on that song."
"What're you bout to do?"
"I'm taking Genevieve to the guitar shop. She needs new guitar strings."
"Damn she plays too?! I might need to handle that sooner than I thought."
"You couldn't handle her if you tried."
"I'm going to just watch. I'll catch you later." With that he makes his way to his car and I make my way to Genevieve.
"You ready to hit the guitar shop?"
"Sure." She gathers her things and we head to the parking lot. "Who's driving me or you?
"I'll drive."