It’s a crisp January morning in sunny Southern California. A layer of morning smog dissipates, as the warm rays of the sun peek through. He waits behind the stage looking into the distance as a strong wind billows and hits his body.

Four years ago, he arrived with great expectations of the frigid temperatures of the Bronx, New York, leaving his family and friends behind. Thousands before had already paved the way to Hollywood in the hope of fame and fortune.
Unlike them, however, Baby, as he is affectionately called, is not a human being. He is a bird. A Moluccan cockatoo to be exact.

As a struggling actor who may soon be assigned to Community Theatre, Baby is about to be transferred. “It’s two steps forward and one step back with Baby,” says Johanna Caliso, one of the dedicated trainers at the Los Angeles Zoo.

She watches Baby balancing on her lithe bones as her cloak of pink and white feathers bathes in the sun. “We are hopeful that one day she can contribute to the program. Right now she is not ready for the program.”

Fortunately, for the thousands of viewers who come to the Los Angeles Zoo each year, the show runs like clockwork twice a day during the week and three times on the weekends without Baby. Today, one of the passersby turns out to be an aspiring actor. If anyone can appreciate Baby’s plight, it’s him.

Like Baby, Erik Nicolaisen ventured into Hollywood four years ago. He has endured grueling auditions, countless hours of rehearsal, and painful rejections. “A lot of this business is learning everything on your own and following your heart. No one will hold your hand,” advises the budding star.

Erik, along with the hundred or so spectators, watches as the cast of birds hit their lines and follow their cues brilliantly. The birds dazzle the crowd with their agility in the air, their sharp intelligence and their beauty. Like a Broadway production, everyone has a role to play to make the show a success.

First up is Blackjack, a crow and house janitor, who picks up some scattered aluminum cans with his sharp beak and makes sure to throw them in the appropriate recycling bin. Next in line is Abe, the Abyssinian Ground Hornbill, who struts along to “I’m Too Sexy” while he nods as if he’s dancing at the Roxbury. He ruffles his black feathers and swings his stubby legs and toes to the roar of the crowd, before disappearing backstage.

As the laughter dies down, the crowd’s head turns to the sky to see Flash, a Harris Hawk, soaring from the top of the mountain and snatching a leather decoy that shoots like a cannon from below. . “Woah,” says one of the young students craning his neck up. “That was great” are the only words that come out of his open mouth.

Meanwhile, backstage, oblivious to it all, Baby sits still staring into the distance, perhaps second guessing his career choice. Being a successful show bird requires hours of training and patience on the part of both the bird and the trainer. It also requires sacrifice.

Just like runway models must maintain their weight, birds are weighed daily to maintain optimal flying weight, which is difficult for Baby. Once he was a house pet, he was used to feasting on scrambled eggs, steak, and pasta. He now must suffer from “bird” food, which consists of greens, bird pellets and seeds.

Next to Baby you can feel the nerves of Cheeks, a Goffin’s cockatoo, preparing for his stage debut. He reminds you a lot of the nervous Luca Brasi from The Godfather before he met Don Corleone.
Music vibrates from the speakers, and within moments, Cheeks makes his grand entrance onto the stage. With the cooperation of a brave patron, Cheeks snatches a twenty dollar bill from his hands, which would surely make Danny Ocean very happy. Unlike Danny, she keeps a clear conscience of herself by always paying the money back.

What the audience sees and what happens behind the scenes is completely different. “It’s like Noises Off some days,” Johanna jokes as she rushes backstage to make sure everything is ready for the next segment. “Sometimes they don’t feel like acting,” she says as she ducks her head and melts into a small cubicle backstage.

By “they” he was probably talking about Scooter. If George Clooney were a bird, he would be reincarnated as Scooter, another Moluccan Cockatoo and the star of the show. She looks amazing in that “didn’t try” kind of thing with a hooked nose that makes you think big noses are all the rage now. Sensing a new admirer, he throws his head back doing his best Derek Zoolander as his feathers glisten in the bright sun. He chirps with a voice that massages your ears and a charm that tickles your soul.

“He’s beautiful, but he’s a diva,” Johanna says as Scooter gently brushes her head against her arm. “He definitely thinks he should be the only bird in the show.” While the other birds performed, Scooter spent the morning lounging in his luxurious estate eating sandwiches. “I’m sure you think it should be voted Sexiest Bird of the Year. Every year.”
It takes a lot of sunflower seeds, the only currency Scooter accepts, to keep him happy, but it’s worth it. He also accepts hugs, lullabies and caresses; otherwise he won’t work for you. Annoying? Yes. Endearing? Absolutely.

Baby, just a few weeks away from her fifteenth birthday, the only chance of becoming a star is if Scooter, one day, either moves on or is somehow injured, which he does. Just a couple of weeks ago, Barney, a King Vulture, was placed on the disabled list after breaking his foot. Fortunately he will be back in a couple of days.

Although Baby has remained healthy, he can’t seem to fly out of Scooter’s shadow. If he was in any other zoo, he would be the star. Instead, he has to swallow the fact that Scooter is simply better than him, and there’s not much else he can do.

After the show, as the others continue their antics, Baby perches on her branch tucked in a corner, shaking her head ever so slightly with just a hint of bronx spite. No matter how much the parrots sing or how many times Abe blasts a tune against the fence, he remains separate from it all.

Maybe he seems to be accepting the fact that he will never be the star, but you wonder if his attitude would change if he only experienced the satisfaction of putting a smile on a child’s face, and hopefully for the children’s sake. the smiles will continue.

Unfortunately, budgets aren’t just for Hollywood blockbusters or the federal government. The program is just one of many projects being choked by Los Angeles’ faltering economy and shrinking budget. “The kids love coming here,” says one of the teachers here on a field trip.

If the show were to be shut down, the birds would either find work elsewhere or continue to live a happy and healthy life at the zoo. As for Baby, the training staff will persistently work with him every day because there is always room for another star. After all, if Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino can share screen time, these two can share some flying space.

“Hopefully next time I get back, Baby, I’ll have made it,” Erik says as he walks his fiancée, Rachael, out the door. “Eventually your dreams get tired of running from you and you catch them.” For now though, we must follow the one rule of showbiz. “The show must go on.”