I'm a Believer

Clifford makes his stage debut this Saturday as Lord Farquaad's trusty steed in the Community Theatre of Howell's version of, "Shrek the Musical."

This wasn't my idea, despite the fact that I fell in love with the movie.  Hard.  I was so in love with, "Shrek," in fact, that I saw it on the big screen no less than six times. 

That's excessive, even for me.

I also bought the soundtrack and played it in my car until I wore it out.

When my friend, director Ann O'Reilly, first contacted me asking if Clifford could step in as Farquaad's horse, I didn't hesitate to jump at it.  But my first reaction to the idea of a musical play was to wonder how it could ever measure up to the dynamic genius of the film.  The answer, as with most good plays, is that it doesn't try.  It has the same characters, or some variation of them, the same story, and much of the same dialogue.  The music is different.  The acting and dancing and special effects all fall upon the mercy of whatever company is producing the effort.

But Howell is doing it right.   Mark Mazzullo's Shrek is a giant, green, bumbling behemoth.  Fiona, played by Annelise Hoshal is a flaming-haired goofball with a mean set of tap shoes.  Kevin Rogers' Donkey has the comic timing demanded of someone dressed in a suit with floppy ears.  The dancing, the music, the colors, the lights!  With the flash and glitter of the headdress of the formidable Dragon, the mighty Melinda Towns has a voice that could rival Adele.  And as Lord Farquaad, performing the entire two hours on his knees as a tiny little man who "overcompensates", Chris Salter is stealing the show.

Clifford has attended two rehearsals and, as I expected, is reveling in the glamour and attention.  His role is mercifully short -- he is to carry Farquaad down the aisle between the seats, deposit him on the stage, wait while he proposes to Fiona, and then deliver him back up the next aisle and out the back doors.

One of the most impressive things about Chris is that he is not a rider, but he is making it work.  "Cliffy, come to Daddy," he croons, as Clifford sidles a step away from him.  I realize this is one of the great things I miss most about live theatre -- the quick thinking, the ability to improvise during the inevitable unexpected moments.

Clifford is handling everything just fine, despite Farquaad's struggle to negotiate with the fake legs.  The hardest part for me will be getting through it with a straight face.

 

 

 

 

Our Big Intro

 

Clifford introduced hundreds of kids to the Morgan Horse when we announced our summer reading program on Monday June 5, 2011 in Grayling Michigan. We appeared at the Grayling Library the following Saturday with our program, "Horse Tales Around the World".

Clifford walked right in to both assemblies, the first in the school cafeteria and the second in a gymnasium. The kids screamed and cheered like he was a rock star. They were sitting on the floor in the gym and he had to stop and say hello to each child in the first row on our way in. We were Laurel and Hardy that day as he happily "supported" my speech by nudging me and grabbing the microphone cord.

Kids might not remember the message but I'm sure they'll never forget the day a horse came in their school!

We are accepting invitations from libraries around Michigan, with the intent to head through Ohio and Indiana through June. We are still mapping our route. Go Morgans!

See our campaign to raise funds for our summer 2013 tour and documentary film!

A (Kind of) Old Horse, a (Kind of) New Idea

Clifford greeting kids at West Branch Library, summer 2011.  Tape on the floor is a boundary for kids so nobody gets accidentally stepped on! Clifford goes to every child in the front row. Those who shrink away he will pass by.

Imagine a full-sized horse coming into your library or assisted living center, and the impact that makes on the children and residents therein.  Imagine the good you can do when you can make an impact like that.

Further, imagine having a horse with the intuition to know who needs him most, with the cool-headedness to accept all kinds of situations, and the brains to stay focused and perform when asked, and the sense of humor to add his own little twist into each program.

We have a wonderful opportunity.

I did have to put Clifford's talents aside last year in order to take care of my Dad as he grappled with what turned out to be lung cancer.  Dad beat the cancer but it was at a tremendous cost -- pneumonia finally took him on March 30.

So, we will tour in 2013 in Dad's honor.  Our touring vehicle has been rendered non-usable, and our horse trailer, Wheelzebub, is old and no longer adequate for long trips.  It is time to start anew, in many ways.

Clifford will be 22 on April 22.  Our time is now!  Since this is totally unique and possibly unprecedented, I want to take a videographer on tour and make a feature documentary.

You can be a part of this new adventure.  Check out our fundraising program.  And we already have our first contribution!


Look back here for updates as we proceed.  Clifford is finally shedding his winter coat.  He is getting ready.

A Wild Heart for Horses

Most horse people have enough empathy to find a movie set intimidating.  As much as we love horses, we all pretty much agree with Jerry Seinfeld’s assessment of the equine as, “a jittery, glassy-eyed dinosaur.”  The predatory response in horses is strong and immediate, so imagine putting one in a completely foreign environment that consists of all kinds of potential monsters:  Huge, swiveling lights on leggy tripods.  Miles and miles of thick electrical cords.  Tarps.  Equipment that raises and lowers cameras, and people pushing more equipment around on wheeled dollies.  Oh yes, when it comes to equines, a movie set is not a place for the faint of heart. 

Here is where Hollywood’s wranglers come in, the unsung heroes of over a hundred years in motion pictures.  They are the stunt riders who risk their necks to make an actor look good, to make a scene come to life, to tell the story that began in the imagination of a writer and director who maybe have never even seen a real horse.  The wranglers are the nitty-gritty, get-your-hands-dirty, real life equestrians, the overworked and underpaid, often unnoticed and sometimes not even acknowledged in the glamorous collaboration that we see on the big screen.

Along with the wrangler comes a very special creature:  A trick-trained horse.  This miracle of nature, when asked, will overcome all his innate fears of horse-eating monsters and jump into icy the river, or look with ears up into the glaring lights and gaping lens, or run over miles of rugged terrain, toward a stack of metal scaffolding laden with panning cameras and moving seats and turning wheels, time and again, when he would rather be running away.

I was fortunate enough to talk to movie horse trainer Tonia Forsberg last night.  She was instrumental in providing the horses for the upcoming Hallmark Movie, Our Wild Hearts.  Premiering March 9, the film is about a wild mustang and stars Ricky Schroder of Lonesome Dove, Silver Spoons and NYPD Blue fame.  Ricky, who also wrote and directed Our Wild Hearts, created the film as a vehicle for his daughter Cambrie Schroder to try her hand at acting.

Cambrie and Ricky Schroder on the set of Our Wild Hearts

Tonia grew up with horses and began trick riding at age 12.  She hung out with such notables as Glenn Randall, trainer of Roy Rogers’ Trigger and the Ben Hur chariot Andalusians.  Training came second nature to Tonia.  “I grew up not knowing that I was learning something.” 

She was most influenced by trainer Bobby Lovegren, who has a long history in film, including the soon to be released The Lone Ranger. Tonia describes Bobby with great respect.  “Of all the trainers I have worked with, his methods are among the most humane.”

I warmed to Tonia immediately when it became obvious that humane training methods were a priority for her.  She said that in her experience, most horses really want to please.  It’s when they get confused, or don’t understand what is expected, that a rider or trainer meets with the most resistance.  Gentle repetition is the key to trust and cooperation.

She said that one of the most difficult things about training horses for film is when a director expects a new behavior within a week, or sometimes even on the spot during a shoot.  She has to explain to the director and crew then that a horse’s learning process takes time, and it is best if new behaviors are taught gradually and with patience.  A horse who has learned something at a slow pace will usually retain it better.  A behavior that is taught methodically will be performed more reliably.  “The longer it takes to make, the longer it takes to break,” she added.

Tonia and her husband Todd, who is also an accomplished trainer, have their own herd of equines that they use for film work.  For the Our Wild Hearts mustang, they used Tommy, their black gelding of unknown lineage.  Tommy is sixteen and Tonia has owned him for ten years.  “He’s very trustworthy.  He has good animation and is a good liberty horse.”

Tommy demonstrates what being a movie horse is all about!

As she spoke of Tommy, Tonia's affection for him was very obvious.  “He had a couple of doubles, but when it called for a scene where I rode bareback, he was the one for the job.  I rode with no bridle and Todd was calling him from a distance of about three football fields.  Every time we shot it, he always ran right to Todd.  We tried it again later with some of the doubles, but that didn’t work out so well,” she laughed.

And Ricky?  I knew that it was often the unlucky job of wranglers and trainers to teach actors how to look convincing on a horse.  I thought with Ricky this most likely wouldn’t be a problem.  He had surely spent many months in the saddle with the role of Newt in Lonesome Dove.  Even though the miniseries aired in 1989, he must have retained some horsemanship skills.

“Oh yes, Ricky was easy!  He was very natural.”  Tonia added, “It took me awhile to warm up to the fact that he is a real person.  They are a very nice family.  Good people. “

At the time of filming Our Wild Hearts, the Schroders didn’t own horses.  But as work on the film progressed, they started talking about buying some.  I think that when it comes to helping someone feel comfortable with a horse, and helping a horse feel comfortable on a movie set, that tells you all you need to know about Tonia Forsberg.

Movie Trick Horses!

Last week I hung out with Rex Peterson while he worked with the horses on the Secretariat film. Here he is with T, the horse who starred in "Dreamer" with Dakota Fanning. T currently has an abcess on his withers and may not be used in the film, but Rex still keeps him exercising.

Here's a YouTube video of Rex working with T.