CLAIRE O’REILLY
Staff Writer
If you like dogs, a good laugh and some good old-fashioned fun, “Mutts Gone Nuts!” is the show for you.
“It’s fun, it’s a lot of fun, and if anybody has ever owned a dog, they will especially enjoy it,” said Rockefeller Arts Center Director Jefferson Westwood.
“Mutts Gone Nuts!” will be a treat for every audience member.
“It’s kind of a nice all-ages show. The families will enjoy it, but anyone who loves dogs or any animals in general would enjoy the show,” said public relations assistant for Rockefeller Arts Center Douglas Osborne-Coy.
“Mutts Gone Nuts!” is part of the Kaleidoscope Family Series and, according to the Fredonia Campus Report, “includes incredible high-flying frisbee dogs, tightwire dogs, dancing dogs, magic dogs and, of course, the one and only ‘Sammie the Talking Dog.’”
The Kaleidoscope Family Series has been a part of Fredonia for many years. The series allows kids and adults to join in on live entertainment and fun. “Mutts Gone Nuts!” is a new type of entertainment for the annual Fredonia series.
“This show has traveled to other universities, [but] this is the first time we’ve done anything like [this] in Fredonia ever probably,” said Westwood.
“I mean it’s more of a throwback in the type of humor, more of a physical comedy and things along those lines. It’s a little different than anything we have done before in the series,” said Osborne-Coy.
While “Mutts Gone Nuts!” will be a silly, fun and adorable experience, there’s also community service and aid for animals in the local area tied into the event.
“We’re partnering with two local animal shelters, the Northern Chautauqua K-9 Rescue out of Westfield and Lakeshore Humane Society in Dunkirk,” said Westwood. “I’m excited to be partnering with both of them. They’re helping to sell tickets and to make people aware of [the event], and they’re, by doing so, earning a portion of the ticket sales. So it’s working as a fundraiser for them and an audience building thing for Rockefeller.”
Each organization will have a table set up in the lobby providing information about who they are and what they do so that they can build a greater core of volunteers.
The show ties into the fundraiser for the shelters in Fredonia because each of the dogs performing their circus-like tricks was adopted from a shelter or rescued.
Osborne-Coy loves the idea of helping out area animal shelters through the show.
“In ‘Mutts Gone Nuts!’ they are all rescue dogs so [the owners have] gone to these types of agencies to get the animals, so they support [the] effort too,” said Osborne-Coy. “It’s nice that we can do something and we’ve included information on the program about the agencies just so that people have some more information about what they’re doing in the community.”
There is one particular part of the show that will please the children in the audience.
“They’ll ask the dog to come over and the dog will come up and lift its leg in the same manner one would at a fire hydrant, if you know what I mean,” said Westwood. “The little kids will think that’s very, very funny.”
Even though the show is nationally known, some locals might recognize it.
“Somebody had mentioned that they’d been to Darien Lake and had seen them there, and we’re looking forward to seeing them again here,” said Osborne-Coy.
Westwood believes that the audience will walk away from the show with something special and intangible.
“We are creating bonding experiences for parents and children, so the kids aren’t just playing with a Game Boy or a Nintendo, but they’re having a special event with the [person they come with],” he said. “We are giving people something to look forward to, and we are giving them memories to take home.”
“Mutts Gone Nuts!” will be on Saturday, Feb. 4 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. in Marvel Theatre.