Jaye Hepburn - Salamander

The animals in the Magic Flute must be tough, both physically and mentally. As the twice-over Hockney Salamander, I revel in both the highs and the lows.

We are beloved by the audience and reviewers. We got better press than the principals during the previous run, and you could hear the audience praising us during intermission. Neverthelesss, we are regarded with condescension by a few of the assistant directors, stage managers, crew, and other staff who take out their frustrations on the animals. I try not to believe that I am thus regarded because I am green.

"And Salamander . . . I should really call you by your name . . . don't crawl on your hands and knees, it makes your tail look funny,” instructs an assistant director giving notes during our ninth (!!!) rehearsal, but our twenty-seventh repetition of our four minutes onstage. That is a lot of scurrying on elbows and the insides of legs and ankles.

Three rehearsals later, an assistant stage manager shows equal insensitivity toward the touchy amphibian persona: "I feel like I am calling my dog," she says, as she smiles and guides me to my exit by shining a penlight at the floor offstage. Pathetically, I am grateful for the attention.

Animals get bloody sores, claustrophobia (Camel is enclosed for six minutes in near darkness), and thigh muscles that burn like those of rock climbers clinging to El Capitan . . . and for what?  For me, it is for the Queen of the Night’s aria. When she sings, the sound waves move through my body like the Northern lights sheeting across the sky over Alaska. My heart stops. I had no idea that it was possible to experience a life-threatening physical reaction to song.

The Sound
and the Furry

Read the tales straight from the beasts' mouths:

Mike Harvey
Giraffe / Dragon

Priscilla Lore
Griffin

Yvette Rosedale
Griffin Cover

Jaye Hepburn
Salamander

Carolyn Waugh
Hedgehog

Lisa Gelling
Other Cover

Jeremy Joseph
Bear

<<back to Intro