Daphne is the main protagonist of the 1997 aardman short movie Stage Fright
She was voiced by Tess Daulton (though her voice actor was uncredited)
Biography[]
Daphne is an actress and a friend of vaudeville theater actor Tiny who juggles dogs. Even though he fears that the crowd will no longer like the act, Daphne encourages him to go on with the show. He is booed off the stage in favor of a silent movie, which stars the arrogant and abusive theater owner Arnold Hugh. Tiny trains the dogs to jump up and place a boater on his head at his command. When Arnold uses this trick in one of his movies, though, it fails because he is taller than Tiny; he angrily confronts Tiny and threatens to torture the animals unless they can reach his height. Angered, Tiny re-trains them to attack instead, prompting Arnold to leave the studio for the confrontation seen at the beginning of the film. Daphne decides that she no longer wants to work with Arnold and follows him to the theater. Daphne swings a sandbag across the stage, knocking Arnold down, Arnold gets up and begins to strangle Daphne, but Tiny delivers his attack command and the dogs advance menacingly toward him. Arnold pulls a metal latch off the wall to use as a weapon, triggering the movie screen to come down on his head and he kicks the bucket. Daphne sees no sign of Tiny when she turns back to the orchestra pit, but he is lifted into view on the organ that had been used to provide background music for Arnold's movies. It now glows white, being played by a spectral organist; Tiny climbs off, unhurt, but Arnold's spirit rises from his body and steps on at the organist's beckoning. The organ then swiftly drops out of sight, carrying a terrified Arnold down to the Underworld. As the theater begins to collapse, Daphne persuades Tiny to overcome his fear of rejection and leave with her. They and the dogs exit into the light of the outside world.