Author Topic: "I am somehow responsible for arranging the donkeys."  (Read 2594 times)

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bex

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http://www.newyorker.com/talk/2014/03/10/140310ta_talk_parker?mobify=0

Has anybody else seen this article in the New Yorker? How hilarious!
You will have to sing for your supper & your mortgage, your dental coverage & your children's shoes, over & over again while people in desk jobs roll their eyes the minute you start to complain. So it's a good thing you like to sing.

Dart

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Re: "I am somehow responsible for arranging the donkeys."
« Reply #1 on: Mar 20, 2014, 12:38 am »
Oh goodness, I lost it at “I mean, I had to fire the goddam donkey." This is great!

I'm actually working on my third show involving donkeys this year. Two of them have been human actors portraying donkeys, but the other involved a donkey and a sheep. Aside from all the, ahem, filth, on stage, the hugest problem was getting them up and down, twice, by elevator. The first time they get in is easy, but the other three they already know what the elevator does!
« Last Edit: Mar 20, 2014, 12:48 am by Dart »

maximillionx

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Re: "I am somehow responsible for arranging the donkeys."
« Reply #2 on: Mar 20, 2014, 08:34 am »
Never had to work with donkeys, but I've done a show with a goat!  Having food in your hand to entice it up a flight of stairs was a must.  Thankfully the owners scheduled it's feeding schedule in such a way that it never, during a 6 week run, went to the bathroom onstage.

I also love how a 9 year-old replaced the donkey.  What a great story!

kiwitechgirl

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Re: "I am somehow responsible for arranging the donkeys."
« Reply #3 on: Mar 25, 2014, 11:55 pm »
I love it, particularly the donkey which liked its moment in the spotlight too much! We have two horses in a current production of Carmen - Kiko and Drummer - and it does occasionally end in a mess on stage but there are chorus members whose job it is to deal with it (brush and shovel kept in the wings).  It also involved the singers going for a few riding lessons beforehand. Kiko is particularly popular with the audiences as he's a beautiful palomino, and when they come on for curtain calls they actually bow, thanks to some clever training.  We did have one night when Drummer was off as he was lame, and he made the illness list on the show report; both horses also have their own access passes for the Sydney Opera House!

babens

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Re: "I am somehow responsible for arranging the donkeys."
« Reply #4 on: Mar 26, 2014, 12:34 am »
Gotta love animals on stage.

Saturday night at the Met the horse the pulls the carriage for Musetta and Alcindoro in their La Boheme got spooked right before the entrance.  A friend of mine, who is making her Met debut as Musetta, said that she was certain they were going to end up in the pit.

 

riotous