Ex-Britney Spears Dancer Recalls 'Bizarre' Audition for Pop Star's Axed Las Vegas Residency

A former Britney Spears backup dancer is shedding light on what happened behind the scenes during auditions for the pop star’s canceled Britney: Domination Las Vegas residency.

During a recent podcast appearance, choreographer and dancer Locky Brownlie looked back on the unusual casting process for the highly anticipated show, which was ultimately scrapped before it ever made it to the stage.

According to Brownlie, the atmosphere during auditions left many dancers confused about the direction of the production.

“The audition was really bizarre. The choreographers were also auditioning like this very hip-hop choreographer, at the time, for something else. I think they’re kind of doing a double duty, which is great.”

He explained that the routines dancers were learning didn't seem to match what many expected from a Britney Spears production.

“So we were doing like this very hip-hop style to like, 'Toxic,' or to 'Slave,' I remember some other friends, and I were in the break room talking like, ‘This is so bizarre, is this the show’s going to be?’”

As it turned out, those early concerns didn't reflect the final creative vision. Brownlie said the performance style eventually moved in a completely different direction.

However, Brownlie said the “actual job” and it was “not” hip-hop; rather, what happened was “jazz funk” and racy dance.

One of the biggest highlights for Brownlie came when he finally met Spears during a callback session.

“My first encounter was a callback audition, which she came to, which was very exciting. In my head, I was like, ‘Oh, I can die happy now.’ I’ve been in the same room and danced with Britney. She’s watching me, sitting in the front.”

The unexpected interaction became even more memorable when Spears decided to personally step into the audition process.

“And for some reason, the group that I was in, she chose our group to pause the audition, and she was like, ‘I want to teach them something.”

According to Brownlie, Spears then got up and worked directly with the dancers.

“She gets up, and she teaches us a couple of worth of something,” adding the Spears then filmed it.

Brownlie later revealed that the footage eventually made its way to Spears’ Instagram account.

The residency was officially announced on October 18, 2018, during a major event at Park MGM in Las Vegas. The project was designed to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Spears’ breakthrough hit, "...Baby One More Time," and was scheduled to begin in February 2019.

During the launch event, Spears made a dramatic entrance as two shirtless men wearing tops emblazoned with her name escorted her into the venue.

She also shared her excitement on social media at the time.

“Excited to be returning to Vegas in February 2019 at the @parktheaterlv with a brand new show!!!” she wrote, adding that tickets would go on sale on October 26.

Just a few months later, however, everything changed.

In January 2019, Spears announced that she was canceling the residency and stepping away from work indefinitely so she could focus on her family following a serious health scare involving her father.

"I don’t even know where to start with this, because this is so tough for me to say. I will not be performing my new show Domination. I’ve been looking forward to this show and seeing all of you this year, so doing this breaks my heart," Spears tweeted next to an archive photo of herself as a child with her parents.

She added: "However, it’s important to always put your family first… and that’s the decision I had to make. A couple of months ago, my father was hospitalised and almost died. We’re all so grateful that he came out of it alive, but he still has a long road ahead of him. I had to make the difficult decision to put my full focus and energy on my family at this time. I hope you all can understand."