Whilst the rest of us hound dogs gear up for the DVD release of Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3, and the advance screening of Tim Burton’s Frankenweenie, Haute Dogs in New York will enjoy a night at the opera. The world premiere of Dog Days opens at the Alexander Kasser Theater on September 29th.
Based on the short story of the same name by Judy Budnitz, the production by Peak Performances is being billed in the New York Times as Opera Unleashed. Featuring world class vocal talent, Dog Days is a dark comedy brought to life through David T. Little’s inventive compositions of classical and contemporary music elements.
The setting of the story is an apocalyptic near-future that focuses on a suburban family as they cope with the domestic complications of the United States involvement in the next world war. As hunger begins to take over, in the midst of the war-induced chaos, the family makes the acquaintance of an unusual furry friend: a man dressed as a dog, whining and begging for food.
Here is an excerpt from chapter one of the book, Dog Days: The man in the dog suit whines outside the door. “Again?” sighs my mother. “Where’s my gun?” says my dad. “We’ll take care of it this time,” my older brothers say. They all go outside. We hear the shouts and the scuffle, and whimpers as he crawls away up the street.
My brothers come back in. “That takes care of that,” they say, rubbing their hands together. “Damn nutcase,” my dad growls. But the next day he is back. His dog suit is shabby. The zipper’s gone; the front is held together with safety pins. He looks like a mutt. His tongue is flat and pink like a slice of bologna. He pants at me. “Mom,” I call, “he’s back.” My mother sighs, then comes to the door and looks at him. He cocks his head at her. “Oh, look at him, he looks hungry,” my mother says. “He looks sad.” I say, “He smells.” My mother says, “No collar. He must be a stray.”
“Mother,” I say, “He’s a man in a dog suit.” He sits up and begs. My mother doesn’t look at me. She reaches out and strokes the man’s head. He blinks at her longingly. “Go get a plate,” she tells me. “See what you can dig out of the garbage.”
It should make for some pretty interesting opera, and leaves one wondering who will make the full length feature film? (Ellie Lee produced a short film in 2000). Maybe the actor Jason Gann will play the man in the dog suit (a la his role in FX’s Wilfred). Anyway, we’d love to hear from anyone who will be going to the opera, Dog Days which runs through October 7.
The Art Of Dog.™ 
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