Roles:

• TRACK 1 – ALEX & OTHERS – Female, 20s and up, Soprano or Mezzo (Flex)
  Rue’s Furever Mom and our show’s narrator/guide. A great storyteller, warm and welcoming, feels like home with a quirky streak. Also to play Scary Tree, NYC Travel Sign, Additional Puppeteer if able.
• TRACK 2 - RUE – Female, 20s to play young, ‘Disney’ Mezzo.
  Rue is a chihuahua mix. Quirky, young, naïve. Has a lot to learn, but she will… eventually. Our hero. Note: Does not play any other roles.
• TRACK 3 – SQUISH & OTHERS - Female, 30s and up, Alto.
  Squish is a one-eyed, one-toothed street mutt (Pekingese mix). Been around the block and seen a few things. Has a soft-side despite herself. Also to play Dogmother’s Puppet Assist, Scary Tree, NYC Travel Sign.
• TRACK 4 – MISS GLADYS & OTHERS - Any identity with a strong belt, 30s and up.
  Miss Gladys is an ageless magical dogfairy creature; a sassy weirdo whose methods may seem questionable but her results are not. Also to play Scary Tree, NYC Sign (TBD), Erica & Sara.
• TRACK 5- ARTEMIS & OTHERS – Male, Tenor, Any Age.
  Artemis is a senior-adult hound mix, twin brother of Apollo. Always sees the water bowl half-full. Also to play Jerry, Backup Pup, Scary Tree, Mean Kid (“Mouth”), Potential Adopters.
• TRACK 6 – APOLLO & OTHERS - Male, Baritone, Any Age.
  Apollo is a senior-adult hound mix, twin brother of Artemis. Always sees the water bowl half-empty. Also to play Jaynie, Backup Pup, Scary Tree, Mean Kid (“Knuckles”), Potential Adopters.
• TRACK 7- MISHKA & OTHERS – Any identity, Tenor (Flex), Any Age.
  Mishka is a floofy Russian Kitty Cat (Siberian), and Rue’s perceived ‘evil stepbrother’ who it turns out has a good heart. Also to play Mean Kid (“Boss”), Pound Boss, Squeaky, NYC Travel Sign, Mikey, Potential Adopters.

The following resources are included in each performance license:

• Permission to photocopy the PDF script/score for your production so there is no additional cost for these assets.
• Production audio files for backtracking, underscoring, and sound effects.
• Logo/media package

STACEY WEINGARTEN is an Emmy-winning multi-hypenate specializing in writing, directing, and producing musical- and puppet- infused works, especially for kids/families (but not always!). She’s worked everywhere from “Sesame Street” to “Avenue Q” with everyone from Kermit the Frog to Julie Andrews, and develops projects that promote social awareness through entertainment through Chinese Mother Jewish Daughter LLC. Stacey has been represented Off-Broadway by “Rescue Rue”, a musical fairytale inspired by her rescue dog, and at Hollywood Fringe with the award-winning sequel “Runaway Rue”. Stacey served as Episodic Director and Supervising Producer for “Reading Buddies” (WCNY/PBS), as a Puppet Consultant on “Blippi’s Treehouse” (Amazon), and Co-Creator/Writer of “Monica’s Mixing Bowl” (Independent). A trained puppeteer, builder, and wrangler, Stacey has worked with the Jim Henson Company as a wrangler for “Sesame Street” (Sesame Workshop), and was ‘with the band’ as a wrangler for “Muppets Mayhem” (Disney+). She’s also had the honor of co-creating/directing the short film “Cone of Shame” for Heather Henson’s Handmade Puppet Dreams. Other favorite (non-TYA) musical projects include the time-travelinʼ sci-fi rock opera “Ludo's Broken Bride”; the chanson-infused French-Algerian Hunchback-of-Notre-Dame update “5th Republic”; and the 1890s gender-affirming Storyville tale “Madame”. A former Dramatists Guild Fellow, Stacey teaches puppetry at Pace, serves as the Children’s Media Association's LA Chapter President, and is mom to the real-life Rescue Rue, her doggy-brother Jack, and human-brother Emmett. For more, please visit SAWeingarten.com and follow her @sayetc.

Originally performed at New York Musical Theatres Festival in 2014