Brian the dog’s legacy lives on in the Tampa Bay theater scene

Matthew McGee wasn’t looking for a dog.

It was 2008, and the local actor and drag performer couldn’t imagine having a pet because he was always traveling for work or spending hours at a local theater. But his parents, Greg and Debbie McLeod, encouraged him to get a companion.

His father is a veterinarian in Georgia and knew about a litter of West Highland white terrier puppies. Dink and Dolly were the parents, and the dog that would be known as Brian was born on Jan. 16, 2008.

He was smaller than the other puppies, but McGee’s parents took a liking to him. When McGee got him, his name was Connery. But he noticed the dog didn’t answer to that name. With his white coat of fur and red collar, he reminded McGee of the dog on the TV show “Family Guy.”

“I looked at him and said, ‘you know what, you’re a Brian!’ And he kind of responded,” McGee said. “Now, he didn’t curse or womanize or drink martinis like Brian Griffin did, but he was very funny like that and he was always around.”

Brian died on July 4, at 16 years old. His health had been deteriorating for the past year.

Some called the duo soul mates. Brian and McGee were an inseparable fixture in the theater community.

“Losing Brian is probably one of the roughest, hardest things that’s ever happened,” McGee said. “I know I’m not the only person to lose a dog. But you know the idea of your first dog? I made Brian such a part of my life ... He was just a big part of who I am.”

Life changed for McGee when he got Brian. He couldn’t take theater jobs that would require traveling for six months. Instead of a solitary life, he now had a companion to consider. Brian’s presence soon became part of McGee’s contract agreements on jobs.

Brian was mostly a calming presence at local theater rehearsals, where he’d nap under the stage manager’s table. When he heard the call for a break — “10 minutes” — he would get up, ready to go for the walk he was expecting.

Over time, Brian found his way on stage, too. In 2009, McGee was performing a Christmas pantomime at the Show Palace Dinner Theater (now called the Suncoast Broadway Dinner Theater) in Hudson. McGee left the stage for a moment, then heard an eruption of laughter from the audience.

In search of a softer spot to sleep, Brian had walked up the stairs to the stage, settled on the onstage sofa and went to sleep.

“I thought, my God, people just love this little dog,” McGee said.

When McGee started working at St. Petersburg’s Freefall Theatre, he asked artistic director Eric Davis if he could bring Brian to work. Davis agreed, as long as he wasn’t too disruptive.

Brian had a calm personality and loved being around people. On the rare occasion McGee had to leave him alone at their Seminole Heights home, Brian watched Bob Ross videos because they were the only thing he enjoyed as much as people.

The dog made appearances in shows, like Freefall’s “Pippin,” in which he was carried out and presented as a gift. He would yawn on cue as if to say, “I’m bored with this.”

Davis said Brian would steal the scene when he was on stage.

“You know what they say, don’t work with kids or animals,” Davis said.

For a production of “Living on Love” at Asolo Repertory Theatre in Sarasota, Brian played a couple’s dog named Puccini and was fitted for an opera costume. McGee said he would tolerate that kind of thing as long as he was around people, which is how he could so easily hold poses during photoshoots with McGee in drag, impressing the photographers.

“I always thought Brian would be in more and more shows,” McGee said. “I think he loved the theater for the experience of it with the people and liked being part of the camaraderie, but I don’t think he always wanted to be on stage.”

Jonathan Harrison works at Freefall Theatre, but met McGee — and Brian — years ago doing theater in Hudson.

“(Brian) was the best theater dog ever,” he said. “From day one he just fit in with all the chaos that goes on with theater, all the backstage stuff, all the antics and the loud voices. He was the perfect stage dog.”

McGee said that while Brian was not an official service dog, the calm he brought to the theater felt like therapy. He was always at Freefall, sometimes greeting guests before they took their seats.

The past six months had been rough on Brian’s health: He had vision, heart, lung, digestive and mobility issues. McGee said he himself didn’t sleep much during that time.

On July 3, McGee brought Brian to Freefall to visit his friends. He hadn’t been there in awhile and was happy to see everyone. It was a rare good day.

But that night and the next morning, he had seizures. McGee knew it was time. He was grateful for all the support he had from friends, his fiance George Ebanks and even their Labrador, Averi.

McGee had been hesitant to take the role of the Criminologist in Jobsite Theater’s “The Rocky Horror Show,” which opened July 10 and runs through Aug. 4. But now that Brian is gone, he’s grateful for the distraction.

Colleen Cherry, who is playing Columbia in “Rocky Horror,” has been a comforting presence for McGee. She knew Brian for a long time and remembered him as a “little gentleman.”

In the wake of Brian’s death, McGee has been flooded with condolence cards, emails and flowers. Backstage at Jobsite, McGee told Cherry: “It’s like the queen died.”

Creating a legacy for Brian

Davis is planning to put a memorial to Brian somewhere on Freefall Theatre’s property. A pet rescue event is being planned for the fall at the theater. It will be called “Brian’s Furry Friends” and will entail adoptions and a show. Follow freefalltheatre.com for updates.