Leesburg Animal Park’s Henrietta Lays Egg at Kennedy Center

Laying an egg may not be the term most thespians want attached to their names, but in the case of Leesburg Animal Park’s Henrietta – a pure Buff Orpington hen that performed onstage this past week during the Nordic Cool 2013 Festival in Washington, DC – the words fit.

Playing the role of “Piet” in Danish acting company Gruppe 38’s performance of “Little Red Riding Hood,” Henrietta’s moment finally arrived.

“Blakkk, Blakkk,” she cried, feathers flailing as she turned her back feathers away from the audience and plopped an egg onto the stage to the delight and amusement of the young audience.

“We thought it might be disaster,” Tom Burke, one of Henrietta’s handlers from the Leesburg Animal Park, said jokingly. “Henrietta was never trained to improvise on stage, but everyone managed to go on with the show like it was just part of the play.”

Visit Henrietta, the newly established Kennedy Center star, at Leesburg Animal Park, which open for the season Saturday, March 16. Maybe she’ll lay an egg for you.

The Leesburg Animal Park, a family-owned and operated business, offers pony rides, wagon rides, live animal encounters and exotic animal exhibits featuring lemurs, gibbons and zebras. Admission costs $8.95 for seniors and kids (under 2 are FREE), $10.95 for adults and $6.50 for school groups.

Visit www.LeesburgAnimalPark.com for more details.