Meet the carnival performer-turned-opera actor in charge of auditioning snakes for a Mozart adaptation. ‘We will be moving forward with Princess’

At the Metropolitan Opera in New York, every performer must audition, including an unlikely candidate: a snake who will play a starring role in an upcoming adaptation of Mozart's "Così fan tutte." Zoe Ziegfeld, a carnival performer-turned-opera actor, is responsible for selecting the snake that will take center stage in the Met's version of the 1790 opera, set in a 1950s Coney Island carnival.

Ziegfeld, who has previously played the snake charmer in the production three times, evaluates each potential snake for suitability. She assesses the animal's comfort with people and the stage, ensuring that it is a well-behaved and visually appealing addition to the performance. The leading snake, a large yellow-peach boa constrictor named Princess, was selected after being evaluated in front of Ziegfeld. A smaller brown boa constrictor named Nala will serve as Princess' understudy.

Ziegfeld's connection to the role is rooted in her extensive experience as a snake charmer on Coney Island. She performed eight snake-charming shows daily during her time there. When the audition originally took place, live snakes were not permitted in the audition space. To demonstrate her skills, Ziegfeld created a video of her act and added to her resume by performing a Human Blockhead act, in which she hammered a nail into her own nasal cavity.

The snakes for the audition were provided by Nancy Novograd and her company, All Tame Animals. Novograd started her career when her horse appeared on stage in a Met production of "Carmen." She now works with the opera house to provide animals ranging from elephants to insects for performances. The first two snakes that auditioned were too small, but the key factors in selecting a performer are personality, color, size, and Ziegfeld's personal preference.