StageDon’t! The Risks of Taking Your Pet Onstage:
Even if you think your dog or cat won’t mind the stage lights and excitement, think again.
As you are no doubt aware, Garden Street Performing Arts is about to open its production of “Cats.” As we all know, this show features several cats onstage for much of the action. All of these cats were introduced to the stage early in their lives and were carefully trained for their roles. If you have a pet at home that you think might be able to appear onstage without incident, we strongly recommend that you reconsider.
Most pets are not suited for life on the stage. Even if they don’t seem to mind the bright lights, loud music and cheering audience, they could be severely stressed by performing in front of an audience as large as our typical Sunday matinee crowd. A cat or dog who appears calm on the surface may actually be very anxious, and that can have serious consequences.
Never force your pet to perform onstage if it shows signs of anxiety. These include panting, drooling, vomiting, lack of appetite and lethargy. If your pet seems unusually quiet and withdrawn after a performance or rehearsal,
My year-old Chihuahua, Jeter, is one of the smartest dogs I’ve ever known. He can jump into my arms from a standing position and he knows to sit in front of me when he wants a treat. But even with all that training, there is no way I would take him onstage with me.
Performing artists are constantly told to “trust your instincts.” That’s great advice when it comes to choosing the right lighting, but taking a pet onstage could put the entire audience at risk. Jeter has been known to nip at the heels of his friends and family members—and he certainly wouldn’t be friendly or calm during a performance.
If you have a pet you love, don’t risk their health by taking them onstage. A wild audience member could easily injure your animal if they become spooked or excited during the show. And if your pet injures someone else, you could be sued for thousands of dollars!
Plus, what if your pet does something embarrassing? You could find yourself in an embarrassing situation if your dog decides to relieve himself during the middle of one of your scenes. This happened to my friend Sam last year when his dog jumped onstage and made a
“Do not take your hamster onstage. Do not take your hamster onstage,” says stage manager Lauren Goss. “There will be a lot of people and a lot of noise, and it’s easy for Fido to get loose.”
For local theater groups and community theaters, the holiday season is filled with rehearsals and performances of shows like The Nutcracker, The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, and A Christmas Carol. While these shows usually feature human actors, some include animals and pets as well.
Garden Street Performing Arts director Steve Goss understands the appeal of including pets in a show: “It’s fun to have animals onstage. They add something special to the production that isn’t there with just people. But if you don’t know what you are doing, things can get out of hand quickly.”
In the world of theater, animals have always been a big draw. Audiences love to see animals on stage and they seem to be able to steal the spotlight at any time with no effort. However, it is not all fun and games to work with animals on stage. There can be a great deal of risk when it comes to working with animals and some theaters prefer to leave them at home.
The first rule for animal actors is that they must be trained. This is done for many reasons including safety as well as professionalism. It helps if you know what your animal is going to do onstage so you can plan for it accordingly. If you are not sure about an animal’s behavior then it is best not to use them until they are more experienced or better trained.
The second rule for animal actors is that they must be comfortable in the environment in which they will be performing. An animal that has never been on stage before or feels nervous will act differently than one who has done this many times before and knows what to expect. This can lead them into trouble as they may try things like running offstage or hiding under chairs if they feel threatened by something on stage (i.e., loud noises).
The third rule for animal actors is that they
Actors are used to having to make do with less than perfect conditions, but when it comes to performing alongside animals, they’re at the mercy of forces beyond their control.
The stories are legion. In one of the most famous, Sarah Bernhardt was forced to cut short a performance of Camille after her pet dog’s barking drowned out her lines. In another, a performer in the Broadway production of Breakfast at Tiffany’s was bitten by a cat during the curtain call and had to be rushed to hospital. And in yet another, a dog was so terrified by all the noise from the audience that he ran off stage, never to be seen again.
If this isn’t enough, imagine what it feels like when an audience member is watching a play and suddenly finds themselves wondering whether their evening might be ruined by a bad smell or an unscheduled toilet break!
In some ways, it’s not surprising that we react badly when animals are brought into our theatres. We’re used to seeing animals as pets or entertainers – and we’re even more suspicious of those who claim they can communicate with them.
It’s not so much that we think they’re dangerous or evil; rather we see them as unpredictable and unreliable. They
The story of a young man who was abducted by a circus, raised as a circus performer, then rescued and returned to his family, is one familiar to most Americans. While this story is fictional (it’s the plot of the 1996 movie “The Arrival”) stories like this do happen in real life—but not quite the way you might expect.
While many circus performers are raised from the cradle to perform in front of crowds, many other acts are actually rescues from animal shelters! The dogs and cats that you see tumbling out of barrels and jumping through hoops are often former pets who were given up by their families.
Rehoming your pet with a circus or performing arts group may seem like a great solution for your pet if he’s been having trouble adjusting to your home or family members, but there are some serious risks associated with taking this approach.
The Garden Street Performing Arts Center in Santa Barbara has been a home for the arts for over 40 years, and was originally named the Civic Theater. It is located in the heart of Santa Barbara on a street appropriately named Garden Street. On this street, we can find many other theaters and art galleries, as well as restaurants and stores. The building itself is an old theater that was once a movie theater before it was converted into a space for live performances.
Since 1975, this venue has been host to shows ranging from classical ballet to modern dance, and from family entertainment to plays by famous authors including Shakespeare. In 2009, it began to host live music concerts featuring jazz, rock and pop musicians. For many years now, it has also been home to the Garden Street Academy of Performing Arts (GSA), a school for performing arts students from age 6-18.
In 2012, GSA celebrated its 25th anniversary with a performance of Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet at the Civic Theater.*”