Review by BRYAN ROURKE of The Providence Journal.
December 15, 2005
PROVIDENCE —Step on stage. Fame follows.
Well, it should, Mark Fleisher thought.
For years, the marketing director at Festival Ballet Providence appeared in its Nutcracker production. He played the conspicuous part of Herr Drosselmeyer, who brings the nutcracker to little Clara. You couldn't miss him. But, somehow, people did.
Fleisher realized this when he'd go out with his dog, Archie. He'd put up posters for the show. And fans would flock -- but not to him.
" 'Oh look! There's the Nutcracker dog!' " Fleisher says. "And I was left alone putting tape on the posters. You like to think that you created some memorable role. But I guess not. Maybe I need more hair."
Traditionally, there's no dog in The Nutcracker. So Festival started its own tradition. Five years ago, it created a canine role in the show, which, of course, has been played by
Archie, who has been in roughly 50 performances.
Naturally, we wanted to know what that's like. However, Archie, a 17-pound Yorkshire Terrier, was unavailable for comment. So we had to settle for talking with his agent and handler, Fleisher.
"It was a tickle-and-smirk idea to put a dog on stage," Fleisher says.
Fleisher met Archie at a kennel in Candia, N.H., in 2000. At the time, Archie was a few months old.
"He spoke to me," Fleisher says.
What Archie said is unclear. But presumably Fleisher said to Archie that the performing arts were an important part of his life. Less than a year later, they were part of Archie's life, too.
Mihailo Djuric, Festival's artistic director, and Fleisher, among others in the company, had talked lightheartedly about introducing a dog into their Nutcracker production. It was the last dress rehearsal before the 2001 show.
"We thought, 'Are we going to do this or not?' " Fleisher says. "If we are, give the poor dog a chance to rehearse."
A natural
As it turns out, Archie proved a natural playing the part of a dog.
"He has such glee in doing his cross," Fleisher says. "He zooms across."
Archie's big moment comes early in the show. Family and friends are gathering for a Christmas party. Children run on stage, which is Archie's cue to follow.
"It used to be that I would wave to him from the other side of the stage," Fleisher says.
"The last couple of years, he immediately starts running. He knows where he's going."
But what may have been a little embarrassing for Archie is that he was the only performer on stage without a costume. That's right. He was completely naked.
The next year, someone stuck a bow on him. But that, apparently, didn't cover much. So a couple of years ago, Gabriana Rosario, who's now 4, the daughter of Festival dancer Leticia Guerrero, picked out a Santa suit for Archie.
"That just adds to the spirit," Fleisher says.
It also helps Archie, who's about 8 inches at the shoulder, get noticed.
"It sort of wakes up the audience," Fleisher says. "Some people didn't see him until they heard a giggle go through the audience."
Won't slow down Though Archie has appeared in dozens of shows, he still needs to work on his stage presence, according to Fleisher.
When Archie is let go on one side of the stage, he immediately runs to the other side. The goal, Fleisher says, is to get Archie to stroll rather than sprint through the on-stage Christmas party.
"Over the years, we've tried more and more to slow him down," he says. "But it doesn't really happen."
Once, a couple of years ago, Archie did slow down. He relaxed. He focused. He improvised.
"He stopped, looked at the audience and scratched himself," Fleisher says. "Then he ran."
This year, Fleisher hopes Archie will reprise that memorable performance, even if Fleisher has to help.
"Maybe I'll have to feed him extra, or put fleas on him."
Article published by The Providence Journal on Thursday, December 15, 2005. All Rights Reserved.
