the original idea for the short was a magician who incorporated a rabbit into his act who suffered from stage fright. this was considered to be too long and complicated, and the idea was reworked. to design the theater featured in "presto", the filmmakers visited several opera houses and theaters for set design ideas. problems arose when trying to animate the theater's audience of 2,500 patrons; this was deemed too expensive, and was solved by showing the back of the audience.