Program Note

In 1948, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game relocated 76 beavers by parachuting them from an airplane using leftover World War II parachutes. Remarkably, 75 survived the journey, making it a bizarre but cost-effective way to reintroduce beavers into remote habitats where their dam-building could restore wetlands and help regulate water systems.

I was first drawn to the story's sheer absurdity, then to the ecological importance of beavers as a keystone species whose engineering can transform entire ecosystems. Beaver Drop reimagines this unhinged story as an equally wacky bootcamp training program for the Airborne Beaver Division.

Two new recruits, Beavers #1 and #2 (voice and bassoon respectively), are put through roll call, marching drills, and chainsaw-assisted log-cutting exercises before being interrupted by an emergency broadcast. Rising floodwaters trigger a contingency deployment, and the recruits are rushed onto a plane and thrown out into action to reshape the landscape.