Elephants at the opera?! Animal rights group protests Pensacola Opera’s use of a circus elephant
(Pensacola) The Animal Rights Foundation of Florida (ARFF) has sent a letter to the Pensacola Opera protesting the planned appearance of an elephant during the May 1 and 3 performances of Giusseppe Verdi’s Aida.
The elephant(s) who will appear at Pensacola’s historic Saenger Theatre are owned by Texas-based animal trainer Doug Terranova. Terranova is well-known for renting out his elephants, tigers and other exotic animals for Hollywood films and traveling circuses. One of Terranova’s elephants, “Kamba,†a 29-year-old female African elephant, appeared in Opera Birmingham’s performance of Aida in 2005.
“These wild animals belong in Africa, not at the Saenger Theatre, a few feet from the orchestra and hundreds of opera patrons,†said Nick Atwood, Campaigns Coordinator for the Animal Rights Foundation of Florida. “We appeal to the Pensacola Opera not to ruin the show by bringing an elephant on stage. Leave the drama to the singers and musicians.â€
Doug Terranova’s two elephants are regular performers in circuses, where they are deprived of everything that is natural and important to them and are forced to perform under stressful conditions. Their appearance in Pensacola will be just another paycheck for Terranova, but for the elephant(s) it will be the continuation of a miserable life of deprivation and confinement.
Although this would not be the first time that elephants have appeared in a performance of Aida, Terranova’s elephants have a history of being spooked by loud noises. In June 2008, tornado sirens spooked Kamba and another elephant who were preparing to perform with the Culpepper & Merriweather Circus in WaKeeney, Kansas. The animals bolted from their tethers and ran through town, causing property damage and frightening residents. The elephants were on the loose for approximately three hours before they were recaptured and loaded onto trucks.