ANIMALS
Alec Baldwin Condemns Use Of Live Nativity Animals In Radio City Christmas Spectacular In Letter For PETA
EPA
“30 Rock” star Alec Baldwin wrote a letter on behalf of People For the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) calling on Radio City Music Hall to cease using live animals for its holiday Nativity scene.
The letter asked for 2023’s “Radio City Christmas Spectacular” to be the last annual show that uses live animals in its Nativity scene.
“Nothing is more magical than visiting New York City during the holidays, when people from all around the world come to see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular,” Baldwin wrote. “I was disappointed to learn that the show doesn’t just feature dazzling human performers like the Rockettes but also camels, sheep, and donkeys, who are forced to participate in the Nativity scene.”
Baldwin, 65, said the animals “feel fear, pain, and stress, just like us, yet they’re hauled from city to city in cramped trucks, stored in back rooms like props, and subjected to loud sounds and disorienting lights.”
He pointed out that successful animal-based shows like Broadway’s “The Lion King” find creative ways, such as puppetry, to incorporate animals without forcing any live ones to perform.
“The Christmas Spectacular already features extremely talented human performers, and reinventing the iconic show to be animal-free would bring it into the modern era and truly align it with the Christmas spirit,” Baldwin wrote. “Please ensure that this year’s show will be the last that uses animals and give this archaic practice a high kick out of your production and into the history books.”
He also called out Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp., which runs Radio City Music Hall, for working “for decades” with the Dawn Animal Agency, which provides performing animals for film, television, and live productions.
“The Dawn Animal Agency “has frequently been cited by the U.S. Department of Agriculture for violating federal law for denying animals even basic necessities, such as clean and safe enclosures, adequate space, and veterinary care programs,” Baldwin wrote.
In a statement to the New York Post, an MSG spokesperson said Baldwin was “incorrect in his assumptions” that Radio City Music Hall gets its animals from Dawn Animal Agency.
“The safety of the animals in the Christmas Spectacular’s beloved ‘Living Nativity’ scene is always our priority,” the spokesperson said. “Their well-being is critical, and they are provided with exceptional round-the-clock care throughout the show’s limited run.”
TMX contributed to this article.
