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Fox vs Kingdom - October 2016 premiere!

An epic medieval puppet satire, based on the saga of a sly fox, and made by three troubadouristas.

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Fox vs Kingdom - October 2016 premiere!

Fox vs Kingdom - October 2016 premiere!

Fox vs Kingdom - October 2016 premiere!

Fox vs Kingdom - October 2016 premiere!

Fox vs Kingdom - October 2016 premiere!

An epic medieval puppet satire, based on the saga of a sly fox, and made by three troubadouristas.

An epic medieval puppet satire, based on the saga of a sly fox, and made by three troubadouristas.

An epic medieval puppet satire, based on the saga of a sly fox, and made by three troubadouristas.

An epic medieval puppet satire, based on the saga of a sly fox, and made by three troubadouristas.

Helene Lesterlin
Helene Lesterlin
Helene Lesterlin
Helene Lesterlin
3 Campaigns |
Woodstock, NY, United States
$2,835 USD 25 backers
113% of $2,500 Flexible Goal Flexible Goal
Highlights
Mountain Filled 3 Projects Mountain Filled 3 Projects
Overview
We are premiering our original puppet theater epic, Fox vs Kingdom, at the historic Byrdcliffe Theater in Woodstock, NY in October 2016. Funds are needed to mount this premiere production (e.g space rental, lighting, insurance, promotion, artist fees). Our company, Studio Reynard, is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, so all contributions are tax deductible.

The Show

Fox vs Kingdom is a new theater production, an ancient beast epic, based on the darkly funny escapades of Reynard the Fox. As told by a trio of French troubadours using puppetry, dance and live music, animal appetites dominate in this retelling of a medieval blockbuster. 

Veering from sweet folk song to operatic satire to salacious tango, we flip through the playbook of puppetry: shadows, crankies, rod puppets, hand puppets, masks. By turns raucous entertainment, gorgeous shadow play, masked dance, this original performance, produced by Studio Reynard, will be launching in October.

  • Premiere:  October 28 - 30, 2016 in Woodstock, NY
  • If you're ready to plan ahead: TICKETS ARE ON SALE
  • If you want to be part of making this all happen - please see the Perks at right! Your name as a backer will be listed, with love, on our website and in the program!


It goes something like this: Reynard dupes everyone, devours a few, sweet talks his way out of trouble, and side-steps a sure death by hanging. In the process, he blithely exposes hypocrisy, corruption, greed, lechery, and gluttony, including his own. 

The story of Reynard was wildly popular eight centuries ago: the witty outlaw who triumphs over entrenched power through sheer rhetoric had resonance in a violent feudal society with nascent rule of law. We believe it has resonance today: Reynard is a trickster, who muddies the waters between right and wrong, between what we say we want and what we actually do. 

We are animals after all.



The Team

A show of this scale is a labor of many. In addition to the four artists below, we work with a fantastic production manager and technical director, plus we rely on an army of wildly talented volunteers both for the development of the work and for the shows.

  • Hélène Lesterlin creates performances that fuse theater, dance, puppetry, sound and visual art. She's insatiably curious about the creative process: she's a collaborator, performer, director, choreographer, improviser, and hands-on maker. Fascinated by fables, memories, and ancient songs, she digs into history, archives, poetry, art and music to create her performances. Founded in 2012, Studio Reynard is home base for her work. Hélène also has a passion for working with contemporary performing artists to help bring their works into being: she currently serves as Director of Programs at Mount Tremper Arts, and was the founding curator for dance and theater at EMPAC.
  • Anastacia Bolina is an artist, performer, puppeteer, and a key collaborator with all Studio Reynard projects. Using materials such as the skeletal remains of plant roots, vintage clothes and fabric, papier mâché and armatures made of recycled electrical wires, Anastacia creates puppets and costumes rich with fine detail, exploring a dark, wild edge in design balanced by an earthly elegance. She is currently creating a video dance project that focuses on the transition of seasons, involving creatures that are part plant, part forest animal and part human. She also runs her own company, designing and installing vegetable gardens in the Catskills - evidence of her time outside can be seen in her art work. 
  • Laura Brenneman was raised by musician parents in San Diego, California, and grew up on a steady diet of show tunes, English choral music, and Abba. Described as “the love child of Joni Mitchell and Stephen Sondheim, raised by Muppets,” Laura writes pop music. She is the resident musical director of the neo-vaudevillian performance troupe, The Fabulists, and regularly performs as part of the Bushwick Book Club. She worked with director Martha Clarke on a workshop reading of The Threepenny Opera (Atlantic Theatre Company, NYC), was commissioned by the Women’s Project (NYC) to write music and lyrics for Gurley, a new musical, amongst other collaborations. As a singer-songwriter, Laura performs her original songs in NYC. Her self-titled EP (2010) was produced by Tony Maimone (They Might Be Giants).
  • Scott Bolman is an NYC-based lighting designer and educator working in theater, dance, music and opera. Scott recently developed several projects with Robert Wilson, including The Odyssey, 2012, and Zinnias: The Clementine Hunter Story, 2013. Other recent projects include re-creating David Finn’s lighting for Parsifal (Metropolitan Opera), 50 Ways (Chautauqua Theater Center), We Play for the Gods (Women’s Project), Songs from the Uproar (The Kitchen). He is a founding member of the collective Wing Space.


History and Future

Fox vs Kingdom is our biggest, most ambitious production to date, and has been in progress for over four years!

Our premier performances will be presented Halloween weekend at the Byrdcliffe Theater in Woodstock, NY. If you want to see the final steps of the work in progress, follow us on Instagram! @studioreynard


Developed as part of the Puppet Lab at St. Ann’s Warehouse (NYC), a part of Fox vs Kingdom was seen at the Labapalooza! festival of new puppetry. We also hosted a series of salons called Café Isegrim: we showed scenes in progress while sharing a feast with our community of fans.

We are so grateful to our supporters who have followed this project along its journey, from our local funders and The Jim Henson Foundation, to the essential time provided by residencies at Mount Tremper Arts, and Drop, Forge & Tool. 

Plans for the show's future include touring nationally and even further afield! We are so grateful to you for reading till the end. If you'd like to stay in touch with us, join our mailing list at studio-reynard.com!

Studio Reynard is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non­profit arts service organization. Contributions for the charitable purposes of Studio Reynard must be made payable to “Fractured Atlas” only. Any contribution above the value of the goods and services received by the donor is tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law. 


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Choose your Perk

Fan

$25 USD
We love you, and your money will cover two months of our Fractured Atlas membership fees (yay!)
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Signed Poster 11x17 Riso print

$30 USD
You will receive one limited edition printed poster, signed by the cast. Created on the Risograph printer, and designed by Ramon Tejada, these posters are framable mementos. Featuring our shadow puppet cutouts, overlaid on a detail from a medieval tapestry, these two-color posters are gorgeous. You will also be thanked at our Fan Level on our website and in the program!
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December 2016
0 out of 20 of claimed
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Friend

$50 USD
A friend indeed! Your donation will help cover the cost of getting the word out far and wide: publicity materials, event postcards, flyers, ads, distribution, and marketing assistance. If no one knows about this show, no one will show up!
7 claimed
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Sea Monster Tote

$65 USD
You'll receive your own farmer's market favorite: an all natural off-white cotton tote bag featuring a sea monster from the psychedelic underwater shadow scene in the show. Get ready to have people ask you what on earth that creature is. It has a lot of eyeballs. And, you'll be contributing at the Friend level and will be thanked on our website and in the program!
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December 2016
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Supporter

$100 USD
Your contribution will help cover the cost of event rentals: tables, chairs, glasses etc. We want you to be comfortable!
4 claimed
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Limited edition Riso Print

$150 USD
We have three limited edition prints for you to choose from. Designed by Ramon Tejada in collaboration with Hélène Lesterlin, these two-color original works feature one of our psychedelic underwater sea monster shadow puppets combined with a monochromatic detail from a medieval tapestry. Risograph prints use a single-color layering process and resemble silkscreen prints. And for this perk, you will also be thanked at the Supporter level on our website and in the program!
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December 2016
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Sponsor

$250 USD
Hooray! Your contribution will cover costumes for our ushers and bartenders. Yes, they will be in costume.
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Shadow Puppet Starter Kit

$250 USD
You will receive a set of three shadow puppets with a simple shadow screen, created by puppeteer and director Hélène Lesterlin, to get you going with your own puppet theater home entertainment. She will confer with you on the theme, but surprise you with the characters. This could make a great gift! You will also be thanked at the Supporter level on our website and in the program!
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December 2016
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Champion

$400 USD
Your contribution will go directly towards ensuring this production has a successful premiere weekend, and a future life, by covering the costs for professional video and photo documentation (without a good video, we won't be able to tour, it’s true!). Thank you!
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Partner

$500 USD
Your vital contribution will go towards commissioning this project: that means artist fees for the creation of the work. You will be making it possible for us to pay our artist collaborators for their talent, dedication and generous labor! Your name will be included as a commissioning partner in our program and on the website.
3 claimed
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Your Very Own Ballad

$500 USD
Our composer, the singularly talented singer-songwriter Laura Brenneman will write you a song on the topic of your choice. You will receive a recording of this original ballad, sung by Laura. You may also use this perk to commission the best outgoing phone message anyone has ever heard. And you will be thanked at the Partner Level on our website and in the program!
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December 2016
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Your Very Own Totem Mask

$600 USD
Anastacia Bolina, puppeteer and mask maker extraordinaire, will create a wearable mask of your own totem animal. Wow your friends at next year's Halloween parties. Or just wear it around the house when you want to feel a little more feral. Or hang it on the wall as art that looks back at you. You will also be thanked at the Partner level on our website and in the program!
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January 2017
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Visionary

$1,000 USD
You will be our hero! That's what "Visionary" means to us. Your contribution will go towards the rental of the theater itself. The Byrdcliffe Theater is a historic theater set in the Catskill Mountains, a part of the Byrdcliffe artist colony. Built in the early 20th century, it retains the kind of rustic, crooked aesthetic that is just right for our show! Your name will follow the production when it tours, credited for your support at this crucial moment.
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