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LOAD-IN / LOAD-OUT:
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Our productions require 5 hours to load-in before the sound check. Load-in can be accomplished with an additional three
assistants, more is faster. Load-out takes approximately 1 hour after the performance is over.
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LIGHTING:
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Lights must be pre-hung before the company's arrival. We supply complete light plots and cue sheets upon contracting. There are no follow
spots. The most demanding lighting requirements we have are an occasional special that we can always do without. We pride ourselves on the flexibility of
our productions and our technical staff's ability to make due with the equipment available at the theater, without requiring the presenter to go to a lot of
expense just to have our show. If your facility is appointed with lighting basics, Opera A La Carte will be very successful for you.
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RIGGING:
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Opera A La Carte sets use no flies of any kind. We leave curtains up to the presenter. The shows work without a Cyc if the presenter is
willing to have a curtain as the backdrop. These productions have been successful over the years even in outdoor shells and college gymnasiums with little,
if any, rigging.
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SOUND:
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We carry no sound equipment or staff. The artists are singers, with backgrounds in grand opera. We do not wear body mics. Many presenters
elect to use floor mics (PZMs, etc.). We leave the decision "to mic or not to mic" to the presenter/facility who know their building better than we do.
Additionally, depending on the orchestra placement, we could require mics on the orchestra with monitors in the wings.
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STAGE DIMENSIONS:
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Our productions require a minimum proscenium width of 24.5 feet, and a minimum stage depth of 15 feet, yet the sets and cast
can fill a stage three times that size. If you have no crossover, our cast has left the building on more than one occasion to get from Stage Left to Stage
Right. These productions have worked successfully on stages with 7 feet of wing space on either side.
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ORCHESTRA PIT:
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Opera A La Carte travels with full orchestra. This can be formidable in a smaller facility, but our instrumentalists are comfortable
working together in all sorts of conditions. Even if you don't have a pit, the orchestra can successfully play from the house floor, and we are willing to place
the occasional instrumentalist on the stage off to the side if need be. Orchestra artists require music stands and light. A pit layout is provided with the
technical package.
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COSTUMES / DRESSING ROOMS:
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The productions are fully costumed. We travel with our costume head of staff and we require one additional
costume assistant, and costume racks. Dressing room requirements are flexible. We can get by with one large room if it can be suitably divided between
men and women. Preferable is a chorus room for each of the men's and women's choruses and at least one or two smaller private dressing rooms, but this
is not required. Dressing rooms must have running water and toilet facilities nearby.
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SUMMARY:
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The long and the short of it is: We have toured full productions since 1975 - there is very little we have not seen or worked with over the
years. We pride ourselves in our ability to make whatever the situation we walk into work well. With Opera A La Carte, you get a strong, friendly
professional team. Feel free to ask your colleagues who have had us.
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