A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
A comic battle between a French Chef and a wily lobster set to live accordion music.
A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
Basic Info
A family-friendly spectacle, A La Carte is a playfully interactive comedy featuring clowning, puppetry, music,
a flash of juggling, 2 pies in the face and a few unruly vegetables.
A La Carte begins as the Chef sets the table for the Grand Opening of his 2-seat café.
Before the Chef can dazzle his very important guests (carefully sourced from the audience), dinner’s main ingredient stages a rebellion
— again and again and again. Who knew crustaceans could cook up such delicious mischief?
A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
VIDEO PROMO
A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
Brochure
A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
Performance History
Minnesota State Fair; St. Paul, MN
National Puppetry Festival; St. Paul, MN
Southwest Regional Puppetry Festival; Asheville, NC
Long Island Children Museum; Garden City, NY
Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; Cincinnati, OH
Minneapolis Institute of Arts; Minneapolis, MN
Smoky Hill River Arts Festival; Salina, KS
Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art; Amherst, MA
Puppet Showplace Theatre; Brookline, MA
Sioux Falls' First Night; Sioux Falls, SD
Kimo Theatre; Albuquerque, NM
Rylander Theatre; Americus, GA
Theatre Tulsa; Tulsa, OK
Elkland Arts Center; Todd, NC
Duluth Children's Museum; Duluth, MN
Paradise Center for the Arts; Faribault, MN
Children's Museum of Southern Minnesota; Mankato, MN
New London Music Festival; New London, MN
Bryant Lake Bowl; Minneapolis, MN
Myles Reif Performing Arts Center; Grand Rapids, MN
Goat on a Boat Theatre; Sag Harbor, NY
Minnesota Fringe Festival; Minneapolis, MN
Elk River Art Soup Festival; Elk River, MN
Connor's Cove Theatre; Tulsa, OK
In the Heart of the Beast Puppet & Mask Theatre; Minneapolis, MN
Steamer 10 Theatre; Albany, NY
Old Gem Theatre; New Richmond, WI
Sioux Falls Parks Department; Sioux Falls, SD
Minnesota Children's Museum; St. Paul, MN
Indy Fringe Theatre; Indianapolis, MN
Libraries in MN and WI
A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
MEDIA KIT
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Sample Media Release
A La Carte: In a Fool’s Kitchen
A comic battle between a clown chef and a lobster
“The brilliance of its slapstick routines is on par with anything from the glory days of Laurel and Hardy.”
— MN Daily
[City] –Award-winning Minneapolis artists Z Puppets Rosenschnoz will perform A La Carte: In a Fool’s Kitchen for local families [Date] at [Time & Location].
A La Carte is a playfully interactive comedy featuring clowning, puppetry, music and a few unruly vegetables. A Chef sets the table for the Grand Opening of his one-table café. Before the Chef can dazzle his very important guests, dinner’s main ingredient stages a rebellion — again and again. Who knew crustaceans could cook up such delicious mischief? Recommended for ages 2 & up.
For more information on this event, contact:
[Add in Contact Info]
About Z Puppets Rosenschnoz
“1/2 Monty Python + 1/2 Sesame Street”
Z Puppets Rosenschnoz delights children and their adults with feats of imagination, mixing hand-crafted puppetry, zany comedy with live music.
Z Puppets has earned many awards, including support from the Jim Henson Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Puppeteers of America and Minnesota State Arts Board.
Based in Minneapolis, Z Puppets tour their family-friendly comedies across the country. Appearances have included the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, the National Puppetry Festival, the Walker Art Center and Boston’s Puppet Showplace Theatre.
Z artists have an extensive background teaching classes, workshops and residencies for students of all ages and abilities. Creative Directors Aronson and Griffith have served as arts education specialists for the Perpich Center for Arts Education, Children's Theatre Company and the Educational Theater Association.
A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
Technical Rider
A La Carte is 40-minute performance combining puppetry, physical comedy and live music. The show travels in a van with three performers who will also load-in and set up. The performers include an accordion player (static downstage left or center), a clown/actor (travels full stage and house), and a puppeteer (concealed within a 3’x 6’ set piece).
Set-up can be accomplished in most venues within an hour. A La Carte is designed to be flexible, and can be performed on a proscenium or thrust stage, black box or even outdoors.
SET: The set includes one 3’ x 6’ x 6’ tall demonstration cart with 3’ wings on each end (center), a folding table with two chairs (stage right), and a music stand (stage left). The minimal playing area is 12’ x 12.’
LIGHTS: A La Carte requires only a general lighting wash downstage covering 8-10’ from the front apron. If available, one special light focused on the boxed area above the set piece.
ACCESS: Due to audience participation, we will require easy access from the apron to the house, and house lights kept at least 25% during the performance.
SOUND: A La Carte uses two onstage sound sources which travel with it, a wireless headset mic (XLR) and an accordion with direct input. The mic will travel frequently into the house. We may also bring an iPod with pre-show and post-show music to be operated from the sound booth.
CLEAN-UP: A La Carte includes carrot peelings, parsley and shaving cream pies which can end up on the floor at the end. Please have a sink, mop and water available for clean up immediately after each performance.
HOSPITALITY: The Company requests the following to be backstage in between events on days in which more than one activity has been scheduled (times will be advanced by Tour Manager):
Filtered water
Fruit tray (e.g. grapes, apples, oranges)
Vegetarian snack tray (e.g. pita bread, hummus, carrots)
MINIMUM STAGE DIMENSIONS:
Depth: 12’ (back wall to lip of stage)
Width – 12’ at proscenium (ideally at least 20’)
Height – 8’ mandatory
WARDROBE: If more than three performances, please have available a washing machine and dryer.
DRESSING ROOMS: At least one dressing room with adequate heating and cooling, hot water and toilets separate from public must be provided.
PARKING: Parking for one minivan is required.
FRONT OF HOUSE: Late seating is allowed. We will require a minimum space of 2’ x 5’ x 8’ tall to set up our Merchandise booth.
SAMPLE WORK SCHEDULE: Production requires exclusive use of Theater for duration of load-in and performance.
Below is typical for a small to mid-sized theater space. Unusual space can also be accommodated.
The schedule below is a sample assuming performances at 1:00 and 5:00 pm. Your schedule may vary, and will be forwarded by our Tour Manager.
4:00 pm: Call, warm up
4:30 pm: Puppeteer call onstage, house opens
4:45 pm: Accordion call onstage, pre-show concert
5:00 pm: Presenter introduction, show begins
5:40 pm: Show ends, Company returns for Q&A with audience, greet children.
6:00 pm: Clean up and pack props
6:30 pm: Company load out, departs
11:00 am: Company arrives, load-in and set up
12:00 pm: Sound check, warm-up
12:30 pm: Puppeteer call onstage, house opens
12:45 pm: Accordion call onstage, pre-show concert
1:00 pm: Presenter introduction, show begins
1:40 pm: Show ends, Company returns for Q&A with audience, greet children.
2:00 pm: Clean up and re-set props
2:30 pm: Company lunch and break
A La Carte: In a Fool's Kitchen
quotes
“Extremely entertaining and engaging.”
“Le Chef brought our 5 year old up on stage — TWICE! Our little boy loved it and has excitedly told us a number of times since “I was on stage!” This is a very funny show and a must see for anyone from 5 to 95!”
“...This was the best region-wide performer ever. . . I have never heard so much positive feedback. . . I have never seen kids laugh so hard in a library!
”
“My sides really did hurt from laughing... both at the performance as well as the outrageous reaction of the kids!”
“If you like kids or still want to be one, this is a very whimsical and enjoyable show.”
“I don’t know which was more entertaining - watching the performance, which was hilarious, or watching the children react to it.”
Interactive, comedic puppet troupe coming to Rylander
July 2, 2011 Keven Gilbert
AMERICUS — On July 18, the Rylander Theatre will present “Z Puppets Rosenschnoz,” a puppeteering clown troop from Minnesota. Rylander director Heather Stanley said in a phone interview Friday that Shari Aronson and Chris Griffith from Z Puppets will perform at the theater following a week-long residency at the Center for Puppetry Arts in Atlanta.
At 10 a.m. Monday, Aronson and Griffith will present the “Secret Life of Puppets” workshop which will teach participants the “tricks to turning sticks, cloth, strings and even your hands into live characters.” The workshop is intended for ages three and up.
The group will participate in individual and group puppet improvisation and learn movement exercises that mechanize puppet's breath, gestures, actions and reactions.
Stanley says registration for the workshop is $10 and is limited to 30 participants. In addition, registration to workshop includes a ticket to the evening Z Puppets Rosenschnoz Show.
At 7 p.m. Aronson and Griffith will perform the full length “A La Carte: In a Fool’s Kitchen,” a comic battle between a fake French chef and a mischievous and rebellious lobster set to live accordion music.
Stanley says that the “highly physical” Z Puppets Rosenschnoz shows are immensely entertaining and are fun for all ages.
“It’s not just for kids and you don’t have to have a kid in tow,” Stanley said.
She described the troupe as typical of the European notion of clowning with much improvisation, miming and slapstick.
“We are excited to have a show like this in the summer,” she added.
Stanley said that the Z Puppets Rosenschnoz show is unlike anything that the Rylander has featured in quite a while. She hopes that this kind of programming in the summer months provides opportunities for families to come and enjoy an evening at the Rylander.
“This is going to be a good all-around family activity,” she said.
Tickets are General Admission — $15/adults, $10/children. Workshop participants ticket to the 7 p.m. performance is included with workshop registration.
“You get what you pay for, and it was well worth it!”
“Original witty and creative great for children of all ages 1-100
”