Observers report that the dress rehearsal for the 23-year-old Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta and the 62-year-old Reginald Kenneth Dwight went quite smoothly.
At first the performers were quite formal with each other, so the form of address was Ms. Germanotta and Mr. Dwight. Then as they got to know each other a little bit, it was Stefani and Reginald. By the time the last note had been sung, they were like two old friends and were calling each other Ga and El.
The only glitch was sharing the piano bench. Elton John complained later that he had to keep ducking Lady Gaga's headgear. He told friends, "It was a supersized, stiff bow that looked like it had been made out of her hair or her wig or whatever. Good grief, it came near to poking me in the eye more than once." He took it all in stride, though, especially as he was eager to discuss with his co-performer exactly how she had managed, at her young age, to have already sold 8 million albums and 35 million digital single downloads. "Impressive," John said. "It was all worth it, risking the loss of an eye, just to learn all about her career!"
For her part, Lady Gaga told friends that she had urged John to ditch the sunglasses and get himself a new wig. "That pixie cut can only take him so far," she said, adding, "his voice and piano playing are fantastic. His outfits are okay. But his head gear could use a little work."
