Monday, January 27, 2025
From Dogs to Lambs to Geese: How Bill Berloni Became Broadway's Go-To Animal Trainer
Playbill: Bill Berloni, Broadway’s most beloved animal trainer and activist, didn’t set out to work with animals, but with a little bit of faith and dog treat dust, he has soared to the top of the industry. With 23 Broadway credits to his name via William Berloni Theatrical Animals, Inc. (including this season's Left on Tenth and Gypsy), Berloni has transformed the way animals are utilized onstage, training rescued animals to follow cues previously thought impossible.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
The very thought of putting a live animal onstage seems like a completely terrible idea to me. I just feel as though so many things are done in theater in a specific way to minimize the chance of things going wrong, but I guess if you're doing Annie, you gotta have a real dog. I really love the idea that Sandy the rescue dog was played originally by a rescue dog, it feels like a large step in the direction of animal representation on the stage. I also had no idea that geese could be trained to follow cues, I believed them to be agents of chaos that wouldn't listen to anyone in any situation. After reading this article, my main takeaway is that I want to visit Bill Berloni’s farm and meet all of these incredibly talented animals. This is such a beautiful way of showcasing how theater often takes old and discarded pieces from other faucets of the world and gives them a new life on the stage, whether it be recycling old wood, or saving a bunch of animals from pounds.
Post a Comment