- checking login information
Loading...From Shelter Dog Facing Death to New Broadway Star
The new canine star of the musical Annie was 24 hours away from being euthanized by a Houston shelter when William Berloni spotted her online.
The animal trainer was looking for a dog to play Sandy. A dog called Bruno fit the bill. Unfortunately, the label on her photo said she was male. However, after reading the description, Berloni was convinced she had to be saved.
According to boston.com, he forwarded the photo to Arielle Tepper Madover, one of the producers of Annie. She agreed the dog had to be rescued.
Berloni says, “So I adopted her sight-unseen. I didn’t think she was a candidate for Sandy. Her description was so sweet and she looked very much like the original Sandy that we were just saving her to find her a home.”
When Bruno (now called Sunny) arrived in New York, Berloni saw she was a good possibility for the role. Four months later, he has his new canine star, along with an understudy, Casey. That dog is also a shelter dog, from Nashville Tennesse.
When the musical first opened in 1977, the original Sandy was a shelter dog. Berloni saved her a day before she was to be put down, and she went on to star in nearly all of the show’s 2,377 performances. The dogs who starred in the four national tours and the anniversary productions were also from shelters.
Berloni told VetStreet:
For the last 35 years, I’ve been only using shelter dogs for productions. Because dogs in shelters, there’s nothing wrong with them. They’re actually great, and they make great stars on Broadway and great stars in your home.”
The new production opens on Broadway in October 2012. This time Pedigree dog food is partnering with the show to try to raise $1 million “to help dogs find loving homes.” For every ticket sold through December 31, 2013, the dog food company will donate $2 to its Pedigree Foundation.
Related Care2 Stories
Dog Seized from Abusive Rescue Group Reunites with Family
Amazing Rescue of Blind Dog Living in L.A. Trash Dump (Video)
Read more: abandoned dogs, animal cruelty, animal entertainment, animal rescue, animal welfare
Photo credit: Thinkstock
Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may
not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.
Recent Comments from Causes
the plummeting ability to see common sense anywhere in our population is preposterous....all preventable…
Animals have always and continue to get the raw/worse end of anything. Clearly, it's the parents of…
meet our writers
137 comments
+ add your owngreat story,thank you for sharing
Hope this can help raise the awareness of animal welfare
Thanks.
Grazie per la bella storia.
Here in Jacksonville, the shelter keeps the animals as long as they can, but they don't have the funds to feed and medically care for any animal indefinitly. No one likes to see an animal put down, I don't even like to hear of it, but it's reality. Those of us who can afford to give do, those who don't can't. At least the animals aren't left in the streets wounded, starving, or frightened. Three of the facilities here are 100% no kill shelters, but they are usually full. It's people who let their animals loose to breed who are causing this, that's why it's so important to spay/neuter our pets as well as obey the city leash law. I don't think the people who work in the shelters are murderers. As many times as I've been to the shelters here, I've never seen an animal abused or mishandled.
why do they call them "shelters". They should be called murder camps. There's no reason for their existence other than to stroke the egos of human murderers. No respect for people who work in "animal control" or "kill shelters".. they're just criminals who like to kill
Good ending for this lucky mutt. Shelter dogs ftw! As Anita said, "Spay, Neuter, Adopt....always!"
What a great story and what a great way to show support for all shelter animals
Shelter dogs and all shelter animals are like diamonds- unique and bright,
Their spirits loving and true, their hearts like light.....
Thank you for saving Sandy and Casey :D
That's such a nice story :-)
login to add your comment
use your care2 login
add your comment