With the cast in place, Rochester Civic's 'Legally Blonde' eyes a doggone good show

Apr. 15—ROCHESTER — Don't say the Civic threw them a bone. Two debuting actors of Rochester Civic Theatre's "Legally Blonde, the Musical" earned their roles.

A long-hair chihuahua named Uzi and a corgi named Clank will be the four-legged cast members in the season's musical that opens May 17.

The two were picked from 13 dogs who auditioned for the roles of Rufus and Bruiser.

Uzi, a 12-year-old rescue, will play Bruiser. Blair Warner, Uzi's self-described "dog mom," said a friend forwarded her a social media announcement about auditions for the two canine roles in the show. Warner thought Uzi, who is comfortable being carried in a bag, could be a good fit for the role.

"He loves people," Warner said.

The audition went well, she added.

"He decided to listen because food was involved," Warner said.

Warner is known as "the Chihuahua lady" in her neighborhood. His brother, Trejo, also 12, will be a rehearsal tagalong and understudy during the production, Warner said.

Clank, an 8-year-old corgi, was cast as Rufus. Logan Stewart, the Civic's office manager brought Clank to audition in part because he knows Clank can be an attentive people pleaser which will help in the role. Clank showed his listening skills with multiple commands in auditions.

"If it's letting get to do something with people, he loves that," Stewart said.

He'll probably appeal to audiences as well, he added.

"He's just so stinking cute, what's not to love about him?"

As far as Stewart and Civic staff can determine, the

dog auditions

held Friday, April 12, 2024, were the first ever held in more than 70 years of the Civic's productions.

Misha Johnson, managing director of Rochester Civic Theatre, said auditions went well and staff had plenty of good dogs to choose from.

"The dogs that are cast are well trained and can do some tricks on stage," Johnson said.

The script specifically calls for dogs. Other musicals that have dogs can sometimes get away with a puppet or recorded barks. That's not the case with "Legally Blonde," Johnson said.

"You really do have to have a live dog — two live dogs — to do the show," she said. "It was smart the way the writers worked the moment for the dog to steal the scene."

In order to cast the dogs, managers and cast members gauged how well the dogs listened and interacted with cast members too. Johnson said cast members said they didn't mind the unorthodox rehearsal.

"They said that was the best rehearsal they ever had," Johnson said.

Depending on the dogs' interest and responsiveness to the cast, they might also get more stage time than is specified in the script.

"I think it's such a wonderfully fun element of the show," she said.

Tickets are available for purchase on the

Civic Theatre website

or by calling the box office at 507-282-8481.