Sarasota Opera Chooses Dog for Upcoming Opera

Sarasota Opera held auditions for a dog that is needed for its upcoming production of the opera Of Mice and Men on Tuesday, February 5, 2013.

The audition took place at the Sarasota Opera House. Auditionees and their owners gathered in the Sarasota Opera Courtyard. Each auditionee was assigned an individual time slot during which they were video taped following commands and interacting with the performers.

Sarasota Opera is proud to announce the chosen dog is "Pede", a 13 year old border collie mix, 13 years of age, who is owned by Jean Smith of Arcadia.

The dog is described by the characters in the opera as a "good herding dog". The dog is also described as old, ragged, and slow. In the opera, the dog belongs to the character of "Candy", who will be sung by bass Andrew Gangestad. As the Act I synopsis reads:

"A furor erupts in the bunkhouse over Candy's old smelly dog, with Carlson and the ranch-hands demanding that the dog be shot rather than remain in the bunkhouse. Candy protests, but is eventually overwhelmed by the shouts of the men, and Carlson takes the dog outside and shoots him."

Pede has already joined the rehearsal process and, according to stage manager Francesca MacBeth, "is doing a fantastic job!"

Performances for Carlisle Floyd's Of Mice and Men begin on March 9th and run through March 23rd. Tickets are available online at www.sarasotaopera.org or by calling the Sarasota Opera Box Office at (941) 328-1300.